


Golden Years

by BadIdeasMakeHilariousStories



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Please don’t kill me, Slow burn Jily, also fluff tho, established wolfstar, i don’t know how to tag, probably, slow burn Dorlene, there will definitely be angst can't believe i forgot to tag that, this is my first fanfic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-18
Updated: 2019-05-31
Packaged: 2019-06-29 06:01:37
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 25
Words: 82,809
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15723432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BadIdeasMakeHilariousStories/pseuds/BadIdeasMakeHilariousStories
Summary: This is the story of the true heroes of the Marauders’ Era, the Gryffindor girls. Lily Evans wants a peaceful last two years at Hogwarts. Alice Prewett wants to kick ass in her classes and spend time with her boyfriend. Marlene McKinnon is figuring out that a Quidditch career might not be the only thing she wants, and Dorcas is just trying to make sure nobody kills anyone else. Welcome to sixth year.





	1. Platform 9 and 3/4

“BLACK YOU BOIL-BRAINED BUFFOON!”

“PLEASE DEAR GOD NO MARLY!”

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

20 minutes earlier  
_________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

Lily Evans enjoyed peaceful days. Days when she could relax, read a book, listen to music, and destress for awhile.

Today was not going to be one of those days.

Platform 9 3/4 was filled with noise around Lily as people reunited with their friends and loaded onto the train. Lily began to try to push through the bustling crowd to the train door when a mass of dark curls barreled into her.

“Dorcas!” Lily screeched as she was lifted off the floor. “Put me down, you peasant.”

“Christ, my mistake, Your Highness,” Dorcas Meadowes grumbled as she lowered Lily to the ground. They stared at each other for about two seconds before laughing and hugging again.

“I missed you,” Lily said as they released each other.

“Missed you too, Evans,” Dorcas replied with an easy grin.

“What’s with the love fest over here huh? You two saw each other like a month ago,” a new voice broke in. Lily and Dorcas whirled around.

“Alice!” They shouted simultaneously, rushing at a girl with short dark hair.

“Jesus, ladies, I kinda need my eardrums.” Alice Prewett wrapped her arms around both of them despite her sarcasm.

“What, so you can hear when Frank calls you?” Lily teased. Dorcas snickered as Alice reddened, shuffling back a bit.

“Now you listen here Evans-“

“BLACK YOU BOIL BRAINED BUFFOON!”

“PLEASE DEAR GOD NO MARLY!”

“I think we found Marlene guys,” Alice said, a shit-eating grin on her face. “Cas, you owe me a Sickle.”

“Damn it. I thought she would wait till we got to Hogwarts to make a scene.” Dorcas began fishing through her pockets, pulling out a silver coin and handing it to Alice. “Also, Lily, as Prefect, shouldn’t you be making sure boarding the train goes as smoothly as possible?”

“Yeah yeah, I’m on it,” Lily groused as she began to shove through the crowd towards the commotion.

“SIRIUS BLACK. TWO YEARS AGO ON THIS DAY, YOU SWORE THAT IF NO ONE CLAIMED MY HAND YOU WOULD DO SO YOURSELF. HOWEVER, YOU ARE VILE AND SO I WILL CHALLENGE YOU FOR THE RIGHT TO CLAIM MY OWN HAND!” Marlene McKinnon shouted from her perch atop two trunks. “YOU HAVE NO REASON TO DISPUTE THIS, YOU CHOSE A DIFFERENT PERSON TO HOLD YOUR HEART A YEAR AGO!”

“WHAT IF I WANT TO FORM A HAREM?!?” Sirius Black screamed back from his own trunk. “I’LL HAVE YOU AND REMUS AND JAMES ALL AT ONCE!”

“NEVER, YOU REPULSIVE PIG. IF YOU WON’T GIVE UP, I SHALL BE FORCED TO CHALLENGE YOU TO A DUEL-“

“FOR MERLIN’S SAKE, SHUT UP!” Lily screamed. Marlene looked at her and grinned guiltily. 

“Oh hey Lils, didn’t see you there. What’s up?” She asked, still smiling.

“Marlene you absolute idiot. There are people besides you in this platform and they would all prefer not to hear this ridiculous cacophony.”

“Cacophony? Did you get a new dictionary over the summer?” Marlene jumped down from the trunks and landed next to Lily.

“If I did I wouldn’t have gotten your attention, I would have just thrown it at your head,” Lily replied, smirking.

“A wound to my heart from my own friend!” Marlene clutched her shirt dramatically.

“For Merlin’s sake,” Lily sighed, fighting to keep a grin off her face.

“Good to see you Lils. Are the others here yet?” Marlene asked, becoming serious for one of the only times in her life.

“Nice to see you too, asshat. Alice and Cas are over there,” Lily responded, pointing to where Alice was reuniting with Frank Longbottom, her boyfriend, as Dorcas rolled her eyes.

“Excellent. See you on the train, or are you staying in your fancy Prefect’s compartment?” Marlene teased.

“I’ll be in ours. See you in a few,” Lily said as Marlene began to walk towards their friends. “And Marlene?” She called out. Marlene turned around. “Do make sure Frank and Alice don’t scar any first years with their public reunion.”

“Remember when they were too awkward to hold hands?” Marlene grinned, and off she went.

“How come yours are reasonable? I couldn’t shut Sirius up at all, and it was not for lack of trying.” Lily heard a familiar voice next to her.

“Remus!” She cried, launching herself at the tall and lanky Marauder.

“Hey Lily. It’s good to see you,” Remus said, eyes shining.

“You too,” Lily said. “How was, um, how was the last-“

“Full moon? It was fine Lily. I’m ok.” Remus brushes his hair away from his eyes.

“Alright. Just wanted to check. Same drill as last year?”

“You handle your group of punks, I handle mine, we handle Slytherins together and take turns with neutrals?” Remus recited, a hint of amusement in his eyes.

“If you weren’t in love with a flamboyantly gay man I’d marry you myself Lupin,” Lily sighed out.

“Shut up and go control your punks, Evans.” Remus began to walk away. “I think one of them is trying to sell a Dungbomb to a second year.”

“Goddamnit Marlene!”

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

4 hours later  
_________________________________________________________________________________________________

 

“So, news on the Frank front?” Dorcas asked as she swiped a carton of Bertie Bott’s from Marlene’s pile and tossed them to Alice.

“Whatever do you mean dearest Cas?” Alice asked as she popped a few jelly beans into her mouth.

“Oh come on. I told you guys about my trip to Italy, Lily told us about Petunia’s vile new boyfriend, and Marlene”- she paused and looked at Marlene next to her- “never does anything interesting anyway.”

“I went skydiving,” Marlene protested.

“You fly on a broom at breakneck speeds for fun, skydiving is hardly a deviation from the standard,” Lily said through a mouthful of Chocolate Frog.

“You’re all horrible to me.” Marlene pouted.

“Yes, dear. We’re horrible because we don’t constantly support your suicidal hobbies. How awful of us,” Dorcas responded, leaning back to rest her head on Marlene’s legs.

“Quidditch is not suicidal! Suicidal would be taking extra classes like Evans has been known to do, so who should you really be arguing with?” Marlene shot back.

“Those classes are going to help me get a better job than you could ever dream of,” Lily responded, and Dorcas snickered.

“Jesus Christ, if I tell you about Frank will you stop this loud squabbling?” Alice cried out above Marlene’s indignant spluttering.

“Sure.”

“Of course.”

“Go on.”

“I hate the lot of you,” Alice said. “Alright, Frank and I are doing fine. We wrote each other frequently over the summer, and I saved all of his letters. We’re going to Hogsmeade together at the first opportunity and we’re planning to have weekly dates, happy?”

“How nauseatingly sweet,” Marlene commented. Dorcas hit her in the side.

“Well, I for one think it’s great. One of us should be in a healthy relationship at least once,” Lily said, smirking at Dorcas and Marlene as they turned to her with looks of betrayal.

“You’re right, Lils.” Alice laughed. “You’ve only been on a few dates, and these two are absolute disasters.”

“Not true!” Dorcas rebutted. “Benjy Fenwick in fourth year. That lasted nearly six months.”

“Two of which were spent ignoring each other due to awkwardness,” Marlene shot back in an odd tone. Lily noticed a slight tinge of red coloring her cheeks, and her eyes looked almost accusatory.

“Yes, well, we were only fourteen, Marly. What do you expect?” Dorcas answered.

“Alice and Frank started when they were fourteen,” Lily added in. Dorcas shot her a faux glare.

“Not everyone can be Hogwarts’s dream couple, Lily,” she answered.

“Speaking of, I think we’re getting close. Are you guys ready to witness whatever the Marauders have planned?” Alice asked as she peered out the window.

“If they pull a prank the first night of school I’ll kill them all,” Lily grumbled.

“Lighten up. Their pranks are almost never harmful,” Dorcas said, still lounging atop Marlene, who looked oddly stiff to Lily.

“Just one peaceful day, that’s all I ask.”

Lily Evans did not in fact get her peaceful day. She actually found herself contemplating all the different ways she could murder James Potter as the entire school looked on at a troupe of armor suits dancing to ABBA.

After the feast, Lily made her way up to Gryffindor tower, leading the first year girls to their dormitory. She then waved Remus over to a table in the corner. 

“Really? ABBA armor?” She asked exasperatedly as he sat down.

“Nice alliteration,” Remus replied, looking darker in the lowlight of the maroon room. “Sirius would appreciate it.”

“Tell your boyfriend that I’m only letting him off without a detention because I’m too tired to track him down right now.”

“I will. Will the rest of us be so lucky?” Remus responded.

“Haven’t decided yet,” Lily teased. Remus grinned and nodded, and began to walk away.

“Remus,” Lily called. He turned around. “Keep an eye on Potter, would you? He may have apologized for last year’s incident, but I lost a friendship because of it. I don’t want him mucking anything else up.”

“I will, Lily. And for the record, I think what you said to him helped. He’s still a bit arrogant, but he’s trying to be better.” Remus said softly.

Lily hummed without much commitment. 

“Good night Remus.”

“Good night Lily. See you in class tomorrow?” He asked.

“I think we might have almost identical schedules,” Lily smiled.

“Alright. See you then,” Remus said, and then he climbed the stairs to his dorm.

Lily stayed in the common room for a few minutes, looking at the fire and thinking. 

Potter really had apologized for the Snape Incident. And even if Remus was trying to talk him up, he wouldn’t lie to her. Maybe James could learn to be a good person?

Lily eventually snapped herself out of imagining how much nicer things might be if that were true, and headed to the dorm she shared with Alice, Dorcas, Marlene, and another girl named Mary Macdonald, who was sweet but not much of a strong personality. They got on alright, because even though the others were loud, Mary could sleep through anything.

Sure enough, when Lily got up to the dorm, Mary was already unpacked, organized, and asleep while the others seemed to be having a pillow fight. It appeared to be Alice and Dorcas against Marlene, who was hiding behind a bed.

“Lily! Save me!” She cried as Alice hurled a pillow at her.

“Prepare for trouble and make it double,” Lily grinned, levitating two pillows with her wand. The pillows then set about beating Alice and Dorcas up the head, which led to shrieking, cursing, and general upheaval. Lily and Marlene were declared the victors after a hard fought battle.

As they all got into their beds, Lily turned off the room’s lights and crawled under her own covers.

“Here’s to another year at Hogwarts,” she said aloud.

“The good and bad,” Marlene replied.

“The joyous and the painful,” Dorcas said.

“The fun times and the studying,” Alice answered back.

“Here’s to sixth year. Good luck ladies,” Lily said.

And so the least peaceful year of Lily’s life began.


	2. The First Day

“Evans, wake the hell up,” Dorcas said as she shook Lily.

“It’s no use,” Alice said as she studied her reflection in the mirror and adjusted her robes. “She might as well be in a coma. Even Mary woke up before her.”

“Hold on, I got this,” Marlene said as she came out of the bathroom. She knelt next to Lily’s bed and put her hand on Lily softly. “Lily?” She said quietly. “The Marauders are gonna blow up the Slytherin’s table.”

“NOT ON MY GODDAMN WATCH” Lily screamed as she launched out of bed. 

The other girls fell over laughing as Lily looked around wildly only to realize she was still in her dorm and the Marauders were, in fact, nowhere in sight.

“That was the opposite of amusing,” Lily said to Marlene, who was still shaking with laughter.

“You’re gonna be late for breakfast if you don’t get ready,” Alice stated as she grabbed her bag.

“Where are you rushing off to?” Lily asked as Alice left.

“Frank and I are reviewing our schedules together before class,” Alice called over her shoulder. 

“Nerds!” Marlene shouted after her. Dorcas giggled.

Lily rushed to get dressed and then the three headed down to breakfast. Marlene plopped down next to Sirius and stole a piece of toast off his plate.  
Dorcas and Lily sat across from them.

“How dare you, Micks?” Sirius feigned outrage as Marlene bit into the toast. “You humiliate me in front of a crowd and have the audacity to commit thievery against me now?”

“Sirius?” Remus said from his other side.

“Yes, Remus, darling, light of my life, my moon and stars?”

“Shut up.”

“Yes Remus.”

“Whipped,” Dorcas said as she stole some sausage from Lily’s plate.

“Excuse-moi?” Sirius answered, looking offended.

“You heard me,” Dorcas challenged.

“Now now, let’s not throw such dangerous accusations around,” a new voice said from behind Lily. She turned around.

“Hey Evans. Wolfstar. Marly, Cas,” James Potter nodded to everyone as he sat next to Dorcas.

“Potter,” Lily responded cautiously. He might be trying to improve, but that doesn’t mean he actually will.

“Everyone have a decent summer?” James asked as he grabbed some food.

“Yep. Hey, didn’t you make Quidditch Captain this year?” Marlene asked.

“Uh huh. Tryouts will be in two weeks, but you don’t have to bother. You’re the best beater in Hogwarts, you’re already in,” James replied. Marlene pumped her fist in the air.

“I thought I was the best beater?” Sirius pouted.

“You’re passable,” James responded. The girls snickered as Sirius’s pout deepened. Remus kissed him on the cheek and then he brightened up.

“So what’s everyone got today?” Sirius asked.

“Potions, Charms, Herbology, Transfiguration and then Defense,” Lily answered. 

“Same here,” James answered, “minus the Herbology.”

“Damn, I was hoping I’d never see you,” Lily joked. James laughed.

“Can’t get rid of me that easily Evans,” he said.

Lily all but slept through Potions. The work was incredibly easy, but she kept one eye open because Snape kept sending her furtive glances. She had avoided him all summer since the Incident but now that they were back in school that would be far more difficult. Luckily she only had Potions and Defense with him, and in each class she had someone to watch her back. Although she almost regretted that as she had to coach Alice through not blowing up her 2nd cauldron of the day.

“Hey, what was up with you and James earlier?” Marlene asked as she and Lily made their way to Herbology. “You two were joking around like old friends. I thought you were pissed at him?”

“I was,” Lily answered. “But he came to me and apologized for the Snape Incident. He made an effort to get past it, and when I told him to stay away from me for awhile he respected that. Plus Remus told me he’s trying to get better.”

“Yeah, Sirius has been on about that too. Something about James being on a lonely road to redemption.”

“Sirius doesn’t feel the need to redeem himself?”

“I doubt it,” Marlene responded. “You know how he is with Slytherins, and especially bigoted ones. He knows he was in the wrong, but he thinks he was less in the wrong than Snape.”

“I guess that’s fair,” Lily said, thinking back to the time she found Sirius crying silently in the common room as he ripped up a letter from his family and threw the pieces in the fireplace. Lily had comforted him, and it had been the beginning of a tentative friendship. 

Herbology passed quickly and easily, much like Potions and Charms. Dorcas was also in their Herbology class, and she all but saved Marlene from a Venomous Tentacula that had grabbed her ankle and caught her unaware.

The three made their way back up to the castle for lunch, Lily and Dorcas snickering at Marlene’s upset grumbling.

“Hey guys. Herbology was alright?” Remus said as he sat beside them at the table.

“Yep. What about you? Who’s the new Defense professor?” Lily asked. Marlene and Dorcas stopped squabbling over the necessity of the Tentacula rescue to listen.

“A guy by the name of Jackson Rein. He’s an international Auror supervisor. The Ministry asked if they could send him to teach because the war is getting worse.”

“He said that?” Dorcas asked.

“No, but it was between the lines. He seems ok, if you pay attention you should be fine.” Peter Pettigrew said as he sat next to Remus.

“Hey Peter, didn’t see you this morning. How was your summer?” Lily asked.

“I had breakfast with Mary this morning. My summer was good, you?” Peter responded.

“We all had a decent one,” Marlene answered.

“Hey everyone,” Sirius said as he plopped down onto Remus’s lap. Remus wrapped his arms around his waist to stabilize him.

“Siri. Good classes so far?” Marlene asked. 

“Yep. James and I have the next two periods with you guys, aren’t you just thrilled?” Sirius grinned.

“As thrilled as McGonagall will be when she sees that you’re back,” Dorcas remarked. Marlene almost choked on her water as she laughed.

“Unnecessary, Dorc,” Sirius responded. 

“Fight me, Siri,” Dorcas said.

“Now now, children, let’s behave,”said Alice as she sat next to them.

“Says the girl who once tricked a house elf into supplying firewhiskey for a party,” Lily challenged.

“You’re grounded,” Alice replied serenely. Lily sputtered indignantly.

“Is Alice being a mom friend again?” Frank Longbottom asked as he wrapped his arms around her from behind.

“Yes. And she’s smothering us,” Sirius replied. Alice scoffed, but sank back into Frank’s embrace. Lily made a gagging noise and Peter snorted.

“Shut up you two,” Alice said.

“Yes mum.”

“Sorry mum.”

 

Dorcas’s prediction proved correct as McGonagall all but sighed in disappointment as Sirius and James entered. Marlene and Dorcas snickered as they visibly pouted.

Transfiguration was almost the same, Lily thought. Not her best subject, but she did well enough to make it to NEWT levels. She watched as James completed the assignment almost effortlessly. He then started transfiguring Sirius’s stuff into giant beetles.

As chaos ensued, Lily remembered that James Potter, no matter what else, was first and foremost a Marauder. And that was one of the things she disliked about him. He was incredibly talented and clever, Lily wasn’t too proud to acknowledge that, but he used it for jokes rather than anything useful.

McGonagall finally turned the last beetle back into Sirius’s inkpot and said, “Mr. Potter, if you think causing a mess in class is so amusing, perhaps you should take an hour to clean the classrooms tonight. Detention, come to my office at the end of the day.”

“Anything to spend more time with you, Minnie,” James smirked. Lily considered smacking him.

“Call me that again and you’ll find yourself cleaning the trophy room without magic for a month, Mr. Potter.”

“Yes Professor,” James said quickly. Marlene and Dorcas laughed quietly along with Sirius.

“I just don’t get it,” Lily said to Dorcas as they walked to Defense Against the Dark Arts. “If he’s so clever, why waste it on dumb pranks and jokes?”

“Bored, I suppose. Quidditch, pranks, I imagine he likes them for the adrenaline rush,” Dorcas responded. “Since when do you care about why James Potter is the way he is?”

“I don’t. It’s just infuriating. He could be really good but instead he’s just a prick.”

“Well, maybe now that he’s trying to get better he can be reasoned with,” Dorcas said as they arrived at the Defense classroom. “After you, Your Highness,” She gestured at the door to Lily. Lily laughed and stepped through. The two took their seats next to Marlene, who was almost falling asleep. Lily smacked her head and she shot up, making the other two girls laugh.

“Welcome, class,” a deep voice sounded from the front of the room. Lily looked up. 

“I’m your Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Jackson Rein. I don’t particularly care what you call me if you do well in my class.”

“Ok Jackie,” Sirius said from his desk next to James. James sniggered as Jackson stared at them.

“Mr. Black and Mr. Potter. I was warned about you two,” the tall professor said. He was about Remus’s height, but not as skinny. He also had much darker hair.

“Today we’re going to go over the plan for the year and some basic skills. I hope you’re all ready, because NEWT preparation means a heavy workload.” Professor Rein sat at his desk and looked out at the class. “Question in the back?”

“Is it true the Ministry sent you here to teach us because the war is getting worse?” Benjy Fenwick, a Ravenclaw that Lily knew, asked.

“Hopefully the war will be over when you finish school,” Rein replied.

“And if it’s not? We’ll learn to defend ourselves, right?” Dorcas said. Dorcas was a muggleborn like Lily, so both were very invested in the war.

“Well, it’s not like any of you will be on the front lines. You’re children. You’ll learn basic technique and useful spells, but the Ministry doesn’t see the need to create child soldiers. If there are no more questions, I’d like to proceed,” Rein responded coolly.

The lesson continued without anything interesting happening. Lily found herself thinking about what Rein said on the way back to the common room. How were basic spells and techniques going to be enough? Maybe they wouldn’t be on the front lines, but everyone was in danger as long as the Death Eaters were running amok. Lily hated even thinking of them, especially their leader. Hundreds of people had already died thanks to them destroying bridges and buildings, and in some cases whole towns. And all we’re going to learn is a few useful spells, she thought bitterly. 

“Hey, Evans. Earth to Lily,” Alice said, snapping her fingers in Lily’s face.

“Huh?” Lily came back to reality. She was already sitting at her table in the common room.

“Where did you just go?” Alice asked.

“I was thinking about what our Defense professor said,” Lily answered.

“What did he say?” Alice inquired.

“That the Ministry isn’t going to create child soldiers by teaching us to defend ourselves,” Marlene said, dropping into the seat next to Lily.

“You’re kidding,” Alice said, obviously upset.

“They’re not.” Dorcas appeared at Alice’s side. “Apparently they’re expecting the war to be over by the time we leave school.”

“That’s optimistic,” Alice snorted.

“If by optimistic you mean batshit crazy,” Marlene responded.

“Can we talk about something else for now? Marlene, who do you think will make the Quidditch team this year?” Lily asked. The others groaned as Marlene lit up and began to ramble.

“Well, obviously James is seeker, Sirius and I are back as Beaters, and Frank will be back as Keeper, but one of our Chasers graduated and another is dropping in favor of focusing on classwork-“ here Marlene made a face of disgust “- so we’ll have to hold tryouts for Chasers.”

“Who’s the returning one?” Dorcas asked, as she was the only one who was still listening.

“McLaggen, but he’s an awful team player. James is trying to replace him as well.” Marlene responded. She continued to drone about Quidditch prospects and gear and how the professional season was shaping up almost until it was time for dinner. Dorcas was the only one who even pretended to listen.

At dinner, Lily somehow ended up getting hit with a turkey leg by Peter as he gesticulated wildly while telling a story. The other girls giggled as he apologized profusely.

“So sorry-“

“It’s fine, Peter. No harm done. If it was Potter it’d be a different story.” Lily responded, a gleam in her eyes.

“Why Evans,” James gasped, “do you hold a bias against me?”

“Does anyone hear something?” Lily said, looking at Sirius and Remus, who were all but on top of each other.

“Not a thing, Lily,” Remus answered. James looked offended.

“Must have been the wind,” Sirius grinned, and James shoved him in the shoulder. “A very strong wind.”

“I’ll show you strong-“ James cried as he catapulted a spoon of mashed potatoes at Sirius.

“A wound, a wound! My curse befalls you from my last breath! Sweet Remus, I look upon you for my last, and pray we will be united again,” Sirius cried out dramatically as the potatoes struck him in the chest.

“Get off me you greasy lump, you’re getting potatoes everywhere,” Remus said, but his eyes were shining as he kissed Sirius’s cheek.

“You two really don’t hide shit, huh?” Marlene said as Sirius climbed off Remus’s lap.

“Why bother? We’re stronger than all the homophobes here put together,” Remus answered. 

“Cheers to being stronger than bigots,” Lily said, raising her glass.

“Cheers!” A chorus of voices responded. Except for Peter, who had already begun to drink.

That night as Lily climbed into bed, she didn’t bother reflecting on her day. She fell asleep quickly, happy to be back home and getting back into routine.

That wouldn’t last long.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, it’s me again. I really loved getting comments, I didn’t think anyone would bother reading this. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you didn’t, tell me how to improve. If you did, tell me that too. Thanks for reading, hope you have a good day/night.


	3. An Interesting Day

The first few weeks of being back at Hogwarts were like a dream for Lily. But then, on the second weekend, the rest of the world hit her all at once. The first thing she saw as she sat down for breakfast was the newspaper. 

“Deatheater attack on Cokeworth bridge kills 30”

Lily grabbed the paper, mind racing while somehow also being numb. Her dad used that bridge to get home from work everyday. She flipped through frantically, hoping to find a list of victims.

“Hey, hey, calm down Lils,” Marlene said, grabbing her wrist from beside her. “We already checked, no one with the last name Evans was even near the bridge. Your family’s fine.”

“Oh thank god.” Lily leaned into Marlene’s side. Marlene squeezed her wrist comfortingly and then went back to eating.

“Oh shit,” Dorcas said from across the table, looking at the paper. Lily’s mind was instantly on high alert again. 

“What? What is it?” She asked.

“Well, it says, um,” Dorcas stuttered, then thrusted the paper at Lily. “Read it for yourself.”

Lily took the paper gingerly and scanned the page. She gasped when she found what Dorcas had noticed.

“What?” Marlene said, looking over Lily’s shoulder. 

“Among the victims were Tobias and Eileen Snape,” Lily read quietly.

The three looked over to the Slytherins table. Snape sat quietly as some classmates expressed their sympathy. He didn’t look even nearly as sad as those comforting him.

“How is he ok? I mean, I hate the guy, but I feel badly for him,” Dorcas said.

“He hates his parents,” Lily answered. “And he loves the Deatheaters. Wouldn’t be surprised if he asked them to do it.”

“Christ, Lily. I know you two aren’t friends anymore but that’s a bit much,” Marlene said.

“It’s really not. Why would Deatheaters attack a small town like Cokeworth? What’s the point unless they had a specific target? And why only blow up the bridge? We all know Snape has Deatheater aspirations, maybe he asked for the attack as a reward for something he’ll do for them,” Dorcas mused.

“Merlin, could we cut it out with the theories? This is getting worrying,” Marlene said. Marlene usually had the most interest in these things, but she seemed nervous this morning.

“Sorry Marls. You ok?” Dorcas asked softly.

“Yeah, just a bit nervous for tryouts,” Marlene responded.

“I thought Potter said you didn’t have to try out again? That you were already in?” Lily said confusedly.

“Yeah, but if we don’t find good Chasers we’re screwed for the year. And this is one of my last chances to win the Cup,” Marlene answered.

“Hey, I’m sure it’ll be fine. You want us to come down with you, watch the tryouts?” Lily asked.

“If you want to, sure,” Marlene said, “but you don’t have to feel obligated-“

“Marls,” Dorcas laughed, “of course we’re coming. Gryffindor pride, right?”

“Yeah,” Marlene smiled. Lily looked between them as they continued to gaze at each other. ‘Why are they staring?’ she thought. She cleared her throat and the two snapped out of it.

“Well, if we’re going, I need to put on a coat. We’ll meet you on the pitch in ten, ok Marly?” Lily said.

“Yeah, sure.” Marlene was blushing a little bit.

“Great. Dorcas, come on,” Lily said, getting up. Dorcas followed her to the dorm room.

“Hey, do you think Alice will be there to watch Frank?” Lily asked as she went through her wardrobe.

“I’m sure she will be. She says Quidditch uniforms make people look at least 40 percent hotter. She kind of has a point, too,” Dorcas mumbled the last part.

“Oh? And what Quidditch player do you have your eyes on? It better not be McLaggen,” Lily teased.

“What? No, it was just an observation. I don’t, it’s not,” Dorcas stuttered.

“Relax, Dorcas. I’m just joking,” Lily said as she saw Dorcas blushing and shifting on her feet.

“Oh good, I was worried you thought I was trying to steal your man,” Dorcas sighed out. 

“Wait, what? My man? I don’t know-“

“Of course you do. Potter,” Dorcas deadpanned, and proceeded to laugh when she saw Lily’s face turn from confusion to disgust. They left the dormitory and began the walk down to the pitch. 

“Haha. Potter is the least attractive member of that team,” Lily said.

“You’d rather McLaggen than Potter? At least Potter respects women for the most part,” Dorcas responded as they reached the bleachers.

“Since when do you defend Potter? Unless,” Lily gasped. “Do you actually like him?”

“What? No, of course not. That’d be ridiculous. Besides, everyone knows he’s practically in love with you,” Dorcas said. 

“Doesn’t mean you can’t like him. Plenty of girls do, not that I understand it,” Lily answered as they sat down. “And methinks the lady doth protest too much.”

“Fuck off,” Dorcas answered.

“Why are we telling Lily to fuck off?” Alice appeared and dropped into a seat next to Dorcas.

“She thinks-“

“I know-“

“That I have a crush on Potter,” Dorcas finished, shooting a glare at Lily for the interruption.

“Oh. Well, even if you did, he’s in love with Lily, so, not much to be done,” Alice said, never taking her eyes from the tryouts. She let out a piercing whistle as Frank blocked a goal from McLaggen.

“Potter is not in love with me!” Lily shouted frustratedly.

“Yes he is!” Marlene shouted back as she zoomed above their heads.

“Go Marls!” 

“Fall off that broom and die, bitch!”

“Lily no!”

“Lily yes!” 

“Don’t make me ground you!”

“Sorry mum.”

 

The three girls made their way to the locker rooms when tryouts were over. They had lasted until lunch, and they were all considerably hungry, which led to some minor impatience.

“Marly hurry the fuck up!” Alice pounded on the wall.

“We’re hungry you fool,” Lily said loudly. Marlene emerged from the locker rooms.

“Merlin, you people are vultures. Lily, did you tell me to fall off my broom and die?”

“Maybe,” Lily responded.

“Ouch,” Marlene said. “Betrayed by my own kinswoman. I can barely breathe. How couldst thou conspire to wound thy friend? A villain, you are, to be sure.”

“You sounds like Sirius,” Dorcas giggled as they walked into the Great Hall.

“How could you insult me by comparing me to Sirius? I’m better than him in every way,” Marlene said, making sure Sirius could hear her as she sat beside him.

“I’m not sure, Marlene. Sirius can do this thing with his tongue-“ Remus responded without even looking up from his book. Marlene coughed violently and Sirius blushed.

“Nobody wants to hear this!” Lily cut Remus before he continued. He smirked faintly.

“Yeah, that was so unnecessary,” Alice agreed.

“That’s unnecessary but a ten minute discussion about Frank’s abs was acceptable?” Sirius countered, having finally recovered from his bout of embarrassment. It was Alice’s turn to blush as Marlene, Lily, and Dorcas cackled. 

“What’s going on?” James Potter asked as het sat next to Sirius.

“Alice was being homophobic,” Remus deadpanned.

“I was not, you jackass,” Alice responded. Marlene was laughing so hard she was leaning against Dorcas just to stay upright. Dorcas was laughing too, but she was blushing slightly as she did.

“Alice stated that we didn’t need to hear Wolfstar’s public foreplay, ergo, homophobia,” Lily clarified at James’s confused face.

“Ah.” James looked at Alice with a mock stern gaze. “How could you, Prewett? We all thought so highly of you.”

“Oh shut up Potter, I’ll ground you,” Alice rebutted.

“My mistake, mum,” James said quickly. Remus and Sirius snorted.

“There’s something wrong with this family tree. If Alice is everyone’s mum, Remus and Sirius are in an incestuous relationship. So are Peter and Mary,” Dorcas remarked.

“This is why we don’t overthink things, Cas,” Marlene responded, still leaning against Dorcas.

“Yep. Hey, anyone up for Gryffindor truth or dare in the common room tonight?” James asked.

“Frank and I will be there,” Alice answered.

“So will Cas and I,” Marlene said.

“I’ll join,” Lily said. “Hey Remus, until then, mind helping me with some Care of Magical Creatures homework?”

“Not at all,” Remus answered. “I have the feeling these knuckleheads will be causing chaos in the common room, so you want to head to the library?”

“Yes please,” Lily said. “Meet you in ten minutes?”

“Sure thing,” Remus said.

“Nerds!” Marlene mock shouted. Sirius laughed and high-fived her.

“Well, not all of us get good grades by studying at the last minute.” Dorcas rolled her eyes.

“Aw, Cassie, are you jealous?” Sirius asked mockingly. Lily got up to get her books. The last thing she heard was Dorcas telling Sirius to “fuck off, you stretched out meth ferret.”

Lily and Remus studied in the library for almost six hours, veering into other topics every once in a while.

“So what do you think of our Defense professor?” Lily asked Remus.

“I think he needs to be less worried about creating child soldiers and more worried about actually teaching,” Remus answered.

“Yeah. And he seems to think that the war will be over before we leave school.”

“If that’s not a delusion, I don’t know what is.”

“If he doesn’t teach us anything, what if we just teach ourselves?” Lily said, sitting up.

“What do you mean?” Remus asked, noticing her excitement.

“Well, we have access to a whole section of library books on defensive spells. If he won’t teach us any, he can’t stop us from finding them ourselves,” Lily answered.

“You have a good point. Alright, if he doesn’t improve, we’ll gather our friends and we’ll figure it out on our own.” Remus leaned back, smiling at Lily.

“Figure what out, Lupin? A way to be less of a disgrace?” A drawl came from behind him. Remus turned around.

“Ah, Severus, I was wondering when you would show up. I was sorry to hear about your parents,” Remus said.

“Not as sorry as I was to hear you were still alive,” Snape sneered. Lily’s hand crept closer to her wand in her robes. “And I see you’re in the company of the only thing lesser than you, a mudblood.”

Faster than Lily could blink, Remus’s wand was out and pointed at Snape’s throat.

“Don’t you dare call her that,” Remus said quietly, but his voice carried more of a threat than Lily had ever heard from him.

“Wand down, Lupin.” Snape moved Remus’s wand away. “Be careful when you threaten your superiors.”

“We’re both prefects,” Remus seethed.

“You know that’s not what I meant,” Snape responded condescendingly.

“That’s enough, Severus. Get lost before I give you boils for a month.” Lily stood and aimed her wand at Snape’s face.

“As you wish, Lily,” Snape mocked as he slinked away. Remus sat back down, only to shoot up when he noticed Lily shaking. 

“Hey, are you ok?” Remus asked as he enveloped Lily in a hug.

“Yeah, I just, I just hate him,” Lily mumbled into Remus’s chest. “How could he talk to you like that?”

“Don’t worry, it’s ok. Let’s just get to dinner, yeah?” Remus said, pulling back to look at Lily carefully. Lily nodded so off they went.

“Hey Lils,” Dorcas said. Lily just grunted in response and dropped her head onto the table.

“Manners, dear,” Alice reminded her. Lily didn’t even acknowledge that.

“Are you alright, Princess?” Dorcas asked.

“There was an encounter with Snape,” Remus responded for her.

“Shit, Lils, you ok? Wait, that’s a dumb question, of course you’re not. Marls!” Dorcas called out. Marlene looked at her from a few seats away.

“Yeah?”

“After this, could you make a quick kitchen run? Ask for a bunch of chocolates and 2 gallons of fudge ice cream.”

“Sure thing. Is Lily ok, or are we getting into it after truth or dare?” Marlene called back.

“Just do it, alright? Thanks Marls.”

Lily lifted her heard from the table. “Thank you, Cas.”

“Anytime, Your Highness,” Dorcas responded, rubbing circles on Lily’s back.

After dinner, the whole group headed up to the common room, except Marlene and Sirius, who were chosen to make a run to the kitchens for snacks. They returned to find the group in a massive pillow fort lit with fairy lights that Peter and Mary had built, the radio playing softly in the background.

“Neat, right?” Peter smiled nervously as Mary kissed his cheek.

“It’s brilliant, mate,” Sirius grinned. “How’d you get it to stay up?”

“It’s got a few Charms on it, but for the most part, good planning,” Mary said.  
Marlene discreetly handed off the ice cream to Dorcas, who ran upstairs to put a Cooling Spell on it and hide it in the wardrobe.

“Ok, the rules of Gryffindor Truth or Dare,” Peter began. Lily, who was sat next to James, started to protest.

“Shh, let him talk,” James said.

“But we all remember the rules,” Lily stated.

“Yeah, but it makes him feel important, so just let him talk,” James responded.

“Alright,” Lily replied.

“The rules of Gryffindor Truth or Dare. You have three truth opportunities. You can only choose truth if you refuse to do the dare, but once you use all three you can’t do that anymore, so use them wisely. If a dare involves another person, they must also consent to it. If they don’t, a new dare will be chosen. Everyone got it?” Peter saw everyone nod. “Ok. Alice, why don’t you start us off?”

“Alright. Remus, truth or dare?”

“Dare, obviously.”

“Hmm. Let Sirius put eyeliner on you,” Alice grinned.

“Ugh, fine. You wanna go get your kit?” Remus turned to his boyfriend, who was grinning maniacally. 

“You’re gonna look so good, babe,” Sirius cried over his shoulder as he ran to get his makeup.

“I’ve made a mistake,” Remus moaned as the others laughed.

Five minutes later, Remus had some rather fantastic winged eyeliner on, and Sirius kissed his cheek.

“All done, Remus. You look so handsome,” he grinned.

“Yeah yeah,” Remus replied. 

“You actually do look really good. Sirius, mind showing me how to do that so well?” Mary asked.

“Not at all, darling.”

“Ok,” Remus said. “Lily, truth or dare?”

“Dare you fool,” Lily responded, already in a much better mood.

“I dare you to wear James’s glasses until your next turn.” Remus smiled.

“Ugh. Potter, you mind if I borrow these?” Lily flicked his glasses.

“I’m going to be totally blind, but fine. Don’t break them Evans,” James said as he handed them over. Lily put them on and blinked rapidly.

“Jesus Potter, how bad is your eyesight?”

“Very,” he answered amusedly.

“Ok, Frank, truth or dare?” Lily asked.

“Dare, of course.” Frank responded.

“I dare you to make a circle around the entire room without touching the floor once.” 

The group cheered as Frank jumped from pieces of furniture to pillows and groaned when he came close to falling or losing his balance. Eventually he made his way back to his spot next to Alice, who kissed him as he sat down. 

“Ewww,” Sirius whined. The others laughed as Alice flipped him off when they broke apart.

“Dorcas, truth or dare?” 

“Dare.”

“Tell is the story of why you call Lily Princess and Your Highness,” Frank said.

“Oh, that’s a fun one,” Dorcas laughed. “So back in fourth year, whenever Lily needed to clear her head, she would lock herself in a room somewhere and just kind of hang out and do some easy spells until she had calmed down. Except one day she couldn’t unlock the door. She was also halfway up the Ravenclaw tower, which meant the only other entrance was a window.”

“No,” Sirius gasped. “You didn’t.”

“Yes, I did,” Dorcas answered. Lily groaned in embarrassment. “So I’m going to talk to Benjy, and I hear pounding on this door. I stop, and sure enough, it’s Lily, banging the door and yelling for help. I try to unlock the door, but it’s not working. So I notice this window next to the door, and I can see the window into the room, so I unlock that and climb out.”

“Jesus, Cas, you could have died,” Marlene said, pulling Dorcas a bit closer as if to make sure she wasn’t a ghost. Dorcas scoffed.

“But I didn’t. I climb out, and I’m clutching onto the bricks, my toes barely on this little ledge, and for some reason as I’m practically dangling from this wall, my brain decides it’s a good time to make a few jokes. So as I’m getting closer to Lily, I shout, “Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your goddamn hair.”

The group cackled at this point, and Lily buried her face in a pillow. A year ago, she and Dorcas had teamed up to teach the others about muggle fairy tales, so they all understood the reference.

“Lily is freaking out, so by the time I get to the window, she has it thrown open and is reaching out to grab me.” Dorcas continued through her laughter. “I get in to the room, and you know how we got out?”

“Do.... tell,” Remus gasped out between breaths. Lily hit him in the side.

“There was a key. On a desk. Ten feet away from the door.” Dorcas said. The group looked at Lily for a second, then burst into another round of laughter.

“It was a dark key, ok? It blended in with the desk,” Lily pouted as the others laughed hysterically.

“So ever since, she’s been Princess, because she got herself locked in a tower and needed rescuing,” Dorcas finished. Alice wiped tears of laughter from her eyes. Marlene had collapsed from laughter and had her head laid in Dorcas’s lap as she drew in shaky breaths. Dorcas had started stroking her hair without noticing what she was doing.

“I can’t believe this. Our genius prefect, a model of intelligence, locked herself in a room and couldn’t find the key,” James gasped out.

“Shut up, Potter, at least I was clever enough to not climb out a window.”

“Are you insulting your rescuer, Princess?” Remus asked mildly. The group laughed again as Lily’s face went as red as her hair. She pointed at him.

“Now you listen here, Remus John Lupin-“

“Excuse you? His middle name is Ophelia,” Peter interrupted. 

“Oh Merlin, not this again,” Remus groaned as the group giggled.

Soon after Dorcas’s tale, the group disbanded to head off to bed. The girls took out the ice cream and chocolates when they reached the dorms, and Mary conjured up some bowls and spoons. 

“Why are we having an ice cream therapy session?” She asked. This had become a tradition when one of the girls was upset, but she hadn’t heard why they were doing it tonight.

“Lily had a run in with Snape,” Dorcas explained. 

“Oh boy,” Marlene said, sitting next to Dorcas. “I think that calls for jumbo bowls,” she said as she enlarged everyone’s bowl.

“Thanks, Marly. It wasn’t even that awful, but they way he talked to Remus was just horrid.” Lily dug her spoon into the ice cream Alice had served her.

“He insulted Remus?” Dorcas asked.

“This means war,” Marlene said. Remus was just about everyone’s favorite Marauder, as skilled and witty as Sirius and James, but with Peter’s heart and gentleness.

“He implied that Remus was lesser than him,” Lily responded.

“Fuck that greasy snake, Remus is worth twelve of him,” Alice said. “How dare he insult one of my sons?”

“Right?” Dorcas said, sketching flowers on Marlene’s back with her nails absentmindedly. Marlene shivered.

“Well, did you threaten him?” Mary asked.

“We both did,” Lily answered.

“Attagirl,” Alice said approvingly.

“Thanks mum.”

As the night got older and the girls got tired enough to head to bed, Lily stayed up. The day was an interesting one, if not one of her best. But she banished the thoughts from her mind in favor of going to sleep. She had time to figure life out.

At least she thought so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there. Thanks for reading. I’ve been sick, and I didn’t have much to do but write, so this chapter is a bit longer than the others. Tell me in the comments if you liked it, and if you didn’t, tell me how to improve. Hope you all have a good day/night.


	4. Halloween

Halloween proved to be a welcome distraction from daily Hogwarts life. The first Hogsmeade trip of the year was on Halloween, so Lily found herself being awoken at an ungodly hour by an overexcited Marlene McKinnon.

“Wake up, Red. Birds are chirping, children are screaming, the apocalypse is coming......”

“What the genuine fuck, Marly. That’s just creepy. I don’t care if the apocalypse is coming, it can wait for me to get five more goddamn minutes of sleep.” Lily rolled over to face away from Marlene. 

“Please get up. I want to be there early so we can get a good booth at the Three Broomsticks,” Marlene continued, shaking Lily slightly.

“Go bring your plague elsewhere,” Lily mumbled in reply, pulling the covers over her head.

“Did she just call you a plague?” Alice asked as she exited the bathroom.

“Rude,” Marlene huffed. “And here I was, being considerate, trying to make sure we had a place to sit later-“

“Shut up you heathens, it’s like 6:30,” Dorcas grumbled from where she also remained in bed.

“Sorry Cas, we’ll keep it down,” Marlene answered.

“Why does she get an apology?” Lily pulled the covers down and glared. Marlene shrugged.

“She’s not as annoying.”

“Bitch fight me,” Lily cried, lunging for Marlene, who danced backwards to escape the red headed ball of wrath.

“Fight me in Hogsmeade, Evans,” she replied, snickering as Lily’s legs got caught in the covers.

 

About 45 minutes later, and a lot of effort to get Dorcas out of bed, the girls began the walk to the wizarding village.

“Ok, where are we headed first?” Alice asked. “I’m meeting Frank in Honeyduke’s at three, but that’s all I gotta do.”

“If we go to Zonko’s first I promise I’ll be quick,” Marlene pleaded, using her best puppy eyes on the group. It gained a mixed reaction. Dorcas, as usual, couldn’t even try to resist them, so she caved immediately. Alice was harder to persuade, but she eventually fell victim to Marlene’s well-practiced pout. Lily, however, was not convinced.

“I’m a prefect. I know what you’re going to do with anything you buy in there, I shouldn’t allow it,” Lily complained as they walked.

“Well it’s not like you can stop her,” Dorcas answered.

“Mum can,” Lily said, turning to Alice.

“Oh no,” Alice chuckled. “Last time I banned Marlene from Zonko’s, she sold my candy stash to first years. I’m not getting involved.”

“Smart move, mum,” Marlene said as they reached the famous joke shop. Lily just rolled her eyes, muttering something that sounded like ‘coward’ under her breath.

True to her word, Marlene spent little time in the shop, buying everything she wanted fairly quickly. Lily was very concerned when she saw the gleam in her friend’s eye as she appraised some of the merchandise. Marlene ended up toting a rather large bag out of the shop, which Lily made a mental note to look through later.

“Where to next?” Lily asked.

“Can we go to Dervish and Banges? I need some new quills and stuff,” Dorcas responded.

“Sure. Let’s go.”

A little more time was spent in the supply shop, but not nearly as much time as Marlene spent in Quality Quidditch Supplies.

“Lily, look! That’s a new beater’s bat! It’s so pretty. Look, it says it’s designed to improve accuracy-“

“I see it, Marls.”

“Mum! Mum, look. Look at that playbook, Potter would love that. Practical Uses of Astonishing Maneuvers in Modern Quidditch-“

“Yes dear, I see it.”

“Oh my God.” Marlene stopped dead in the aisle, causing Dorcas and Lily to crash into her from behind.

“What?” Dorcas asked, standing on her toes to see over Marlene’s shoulder.

“It’s a Nimbus 1700,” Marlene whispered reverently.

“Is that a big deal?” Lily asked, confused.

“A huge deal. Nimbus 1700’s are the best in the market. Improved speeds, maneuverability, a built-in quick-brake system, it’s the choice broom for national players,” Dorcas answered. Marlene turned around, and both she and Lily gave Dorcas a strange look. 

“What?” Dorcas asked, slightly self-conscious.

“How on earth did you know all that?” Lily responded, astonished.

“She went on a huge rant about it a few days ago.” Dorcas gestured to Marlene.

“You remember that? I didn’t think any of you were listening,” Marlene said, turning her attention fully to Dorcas rather than the broom of her dreams.

“Well, yeah,” Dorcas smiled. “I generally listen when you talk, Marls.”

“Oh,” Marlene said. Lily could see that she was blushing slightly.

“Come on, I think we lost Alice,” Dorcas said, grabbing both Marlene and Lily. Marlene startled as if coming out of a trance, and she and Lily allowed themselves to be led away.

They found Alice in a booth in the Three Broomsticks. Peter and Mary were with her.

“Alice, how could you leave us to the horror of Marlene’s Quidditch talk?” Lily cried dramatically. Alice merely rolled her eyes in response.

“Potter, Remus, and Black are ordering drinks. I asked them to order for you lot too, I knew it wouldn’t be long until you came to haunt me.”

“Haunt you?” Dorcas raised a hand to her chest. “Why I never-“

“Now you actually sound like the ghost of my grandma or something. Don’t do that,” Peter laughed. The girls sat down as the cafe began to get more crowded.

“Why are there suddenly people here? Excuse you, peasants, this is my territory, back off,” Marlene said. An older man shot her a nasty look, and she grinned widely and flipped him off.

“Manners, dear,” Alice said loftily.

“You can’t talk about manners when we all saw your hand get dangerously close to Frank’s broomstick during dinner,” Marlene answered. Alice turned red as the girls at the table cackled.

“Broomstick? I don’t get it,” Peter said. Mary giggled a bit more and kissed him.

“Never change, Pete,” she said, causing him to blush.

“Budge up, folks, it’s about to be a bit more crowded,” James appeared next to Lily. “Come on, scoot in or you don’t get your drinks.”

“Butterbeer for Marly, Cas, Lils, and Pete, some raspberry concoction for Alice, and one caramel soda thing for Mary,” Remus said, taking drinks off a tray and handing them out. Lily accepted her warm butterbeer gratefully.

“Where have you guys been?” She asked, looking at the three Marauders.

“Joke shop, Honeyduke’s, hexing some people,” Sirius recounted. James sighed in annoyance.

“Mate, you were supposed to leave the hexing bit out.”

“Oh, my mistake,” Sirius said.

“Who did you hex?” Lily tried to control her rising anger. They were supposed to be trying to get better! And now they were hexing people in Hogsmeade, honestly, what were any of them thinking?

“No one,” James said unconvincingly. “Sirius was kidding.”

“Don’t even think about lying to me, Potter,” Lily spat out. “Who was it?”

“Barry Whittle, that Ravenclaw git,” Sirius answered. James turned to him with a look of betrayal. Sirius just shrugged.

“She was gonna find out anyway, mate.”

“May I ask why on earth you felt entitled to do that?” Lily’s voice was deadly calm. Marlene grabbed her wrist but she moved away from the grip.

“He was being a git,” James said, as though it explained everything. Lily scoffed.

“That doesn’t mean you get to hex him! Remus, I can’t believe you’re ok with this.” Lily turned to her fellow prefect.

“Actually, Lily, this is the first I’m hearing this. I was in the bookshop at the time, I’m assuming?” Remus looked at his boyfriend sternly. Sirius nodded meekly.

“Why did you do it?” He asked quietly. The rest of the booth remained silent, heads bobbing back and forth like they were watching tennis.

“He was being a git about you and Sirius, Moony,” James blurted. 

“Oh, then that’s acceptable,” Marlene said, returning to her drink.

“No it’s not. You don’t get to hex someone, no matter how awful they are,” Lily said.

“Didn’t you hex three Slytherins for bullying a first year, Evans?” James shot back.

“What does that have to do with anything?” Lily’s eyes were steely. James didn’t seem to see the danger in them. Or he was reckless enough to continue anyway.

“It proves that you’re a major hypocrite, Evans,” James finished. Alice’s eyes went wide. Some members of the table actually gasped. Lily seemed on the verge of explosion, until she got up and left without a word.

“Wrong thing to say, mate,” Sirius clapped James on the shoulder.

“It was true though,” James muttered darkly as he drained his drink.

“We’re gonna go catch up to her. Please don’t cause more trouble,” Alice implored as she, Dorcas, and Marlene left the cafe.

They found Lily near the Shrieking Shack, sitting on a bench. Alice sat beside her, Dorcas beside Alice. Marlene sprawled across them like a cat.

“Get off of me you lump,” Lily groaned as she shoved at Marlene’s legs.

“Nope. Stop moping, I want candy,” Marlene replied.

“How are the two related? And are you five?” Dorcas said. Marlene stuck her tongue out.

“Five and a half, actually. And they’re related because we’re obviously not leaving until Lily’s done moping and I really want to get to Honeyduke’s,” Marlene responded.

“Thanks you bitch,” Alice said, successfully shoving Alice off of the three girls and onto the ground, where she proceeded to flop about like a fish. Lily giggled.

“Sorry guys, Potter just got to me. I only needed a moment.”

“Are you sure? We can talk if you need to,” Dorcas, ever the emotionally mature one, replied.

“I’m sure. Let’s satisfy the five year old’s sugar cravings,” Lily said.

“YAAAAYYYYY!” Marlene shouted as she sprinted back to the main village. The others laughed and followed, claiming not to know her to all who asked.

 

The girls returned to Hogwarts at six, each with at least one large bag of candy. 

“The feast starts at seven, right?” Marlene asked through a mouthful of chocolate. 

“Yep. Do you think the Marauders are gonna do a prank?” Alice questioned. Dorcas snorted.

“They do every year, why wouldn’t they?” 

“If they do I’m going to give them all detention,” Lily said resolutely.

“But Princess, they’re funny,” Dorcas whined.

“I don’t care if they make Minerva McGonagall, the goddess herself, laugh, I’m going to give them detention.”

“Is this payback for James calling you a hypocrite?” Marlene, ever the tactless friend, asked.

“No,” Lily pouted.

“So that’s a yes. C’mon, Lily, don’t let him get to you. Who cares what Potter thinks?” Dorcas said.

“What if he was right?” Lily stopped dead. “I do hex people occasionally. But only for really good reasons or to defend myself. But Potter was only defending his friends. Which I would have done too. But should he really have hexed anyone? Couldn’t he just prank him or something? Wait, no, I would hex them on the spot too. Or would I prank them later? What if-“ 

“Lily, girl, calm down. Breathe,” Marlene reminded her.

“Look, was hexing Whittle the right thing to do? No. Was it understandable? Yes. Do I think you would do the same thing? Probably. You’re a bit trigger-happy for a Prefect, Your Highness,” Dorcas cut in as Lily inhaled.

“Not exactly helping, Cas,” Marlene said.

“Let me finish. Lily, you’re in a complicated spot because you have to be an example, but you also have to be yourself. If you think it’s right to punish Potter and Black, do it. But you can’t claim to be above them if you do the same things,” Dorcas finished. The other girls looked at her confusedly.

“What?” She blushed under their scrutiny.

“That was really smart,” Marlene said. Dorcas blushed even harder.

“I have been known to be smart occasionally, Marls,” she responded.

“Yeah, but you’ve also been known to eat a whole tube of cookie dough in one sitting because Frank dared you to,” Marlene answered. The two bickered the whole way to the dormitory.

During the feast, the Marauders did in fact pull off quite the prank, causing the pumpkins to grow bodies and fight each other with candlesticks. No one was hurt, though it was noticed that much of the food at the Slytherins table ended up covered in wax.

Lily noticed Marlene eating less than usual, and she didn’t seem quite as amused by the prank as Lily would have thought. She waited until near the end of the feast when no one was paying attention to ask about it.

“Hey, Marly, what’s wrong?” She asked as Marlene grimaced at her plate.

“Hmm? Oh nothing. Just, you know, worried about Quidditch. First game next week and all,” Marlene answered unconvincingly.

“Right. Wanna tell me what’s actually going on?” Lily asked. Marlene looked around nervously to make sure no one was listening.

“Maybe later, ok? I just..... I’ve been figuring things out lately and I’m kinda scared of the conclusion,” Marlene responded.

“A three syllable word? This must be serious,” Lily joked, trying to lighten the mood. Marlene made a little half-grin but the smile didn’t reach her eyes.

“Yeah yeah. Just....... when I tell you, swear that you won’t hate me. Please,” Marlene implored. There was something unrecognizable in her eyes, something like fear. But Marlene doesn’t get scared, Lily thought. She nodded and the look went away, but Lily found herself thinking about it as they finished dinner.

“What happened to ‘give them all detention’?” Dorcas asked as they climbed to the dormitory.

“Huh?” Lily, lost in thought, responded. 

“Never mind,” Dorcas said, hoping her friend’s distraction meant the Marauders were getting out of punishment. They were annoying, but they were fun to have around.

The girls talked quietly until ten, at which point Alice passed out. The others got her to bed and then went to bed themselves. Lily, however, lay awake, wondering what had her best friend so spooked. What could possibly make her think Lily would hate her? They had been best friends since first year when they teamed up to prank the Marauders. Alice and Dorcas were incredible friends, and Lily loved them to death, but she and Marlene were inseparable. 

Lily heard one of the girls get out of bed, and suddenly Marlene was by the door to the staircase. She gestured for Lily to follow her. Lily quickly and carefully got out of bed, making sure to not make too much noise.

Marlene was waiting on the couch when she got there. Lily sat next to her, but Marlene continued to gaze at the fire, light glinting off her blonde hair. She was curled into herself, feet up on the couch and arms around her knees. She looked small and lost. Lily was used to her friend having a larger-than-life kind of presence. Seeing her like this was definitely concerning, and slightly frightening.

“Marly, what’s wrong? You know you can tell me anything. Nothing you could say would make me hate you,” Lily started, looking at her friend. 

“Yeah?” Marlene said quietly, still not looking at Lily. “Is there anything I could say that would make you scared of me?”

“I was on the other side of the bathroom door when you put in a tampon for the first time. You couldn’t scare me if you tried, sweetie,” Lily scoffed. Marlene cracked a small smile, but still didn’t look at her friend.

“What do you find attractive about guys? Like what features?” Marlene asked quietly. Lily almost laughed until she saw how scared her friend still looked. So instead she started talking.

“Eyes. Eyes are definitely a thing. Dark brown eyes? I’m a goner. Slightly scruffy look. Not like Potter, but a bit messy. Tall, definitely. Well, I could make an exception if other criteria is met. If they’re fit? Wow that’s nice. Abs? Biceps? Mark me down as married,” Lily joked. Marlene smiled, which made Lily keep going. “Athletic is a nice bonus, and intelligence is obviously a must. Kind, supportive but not smothering, a good friend. He has to be funny too. I’ve been out with guys who had the personality of soggy cardboard and that was the opposite of a good time.”

“You know you’re basically describing Potter, right?” Marlene almost grinned. Lily sputtered indignantly.

“Fuck off, McKinnon.”

“Yeah.” Marlene went quiet again. Lily sensed that now was the time to prod.

“Why do you want to know? You better not be setting me up with someone,” she joked.

“No, it’s just..... Merlin, I don’t even know. I don’t know how to say this,” Marlene fiddled with her robes.

“Then just talk. Until the thing you want to say eventually comes out,” Lily advised. Marlene snorted.

“Heh, comes out.... ok, here goes, I guess. Everything you said makes sense, right? The whole, finding guys attractive especially if they have these qualities, thing. But I don’t feel it? Like, I can look at a guy and go, yeah, he’s fit, or I can think he has good hair, or pretty eyes or something, but it doesn’t make me feel anything?” Marlene got up and began to pace. Lily watched her face carefully, picking up on her stress and slight confusion.

“Ok, so you haven’t met anyone who makes you feel something like that. Is that what this is about?” Lily guessed, keeping her voice quiet and soothing. Marlene’s pacing didn’t even slow down, however.

“No. I have met someone. I’ve met someone who makes me feel so much. I look at their eyes and I feel like I can see galaxies in them. Their hair is so gorgeous, and they’re really fit. They’re so smart, ridiculously kind, sweet, talented, thoughtful, caring, funny, everything good a person could be,” Marlene listed, still pacing. A thought started forming in Lily’s mind, but she waited for Marlene to finish. “They’re the best person I’ve ever met. I really like them. I trust them. Trust, Lily. Do you know how hard that is for me?”

“Oh I know,” Lily said, thinking back to the days where Marlene was her friend but still secretive. A family that always wanted to know everything about you generally made you want to keep secrets and find privacy, and Marlene’s family was less than accommodating about that.

“And it’s driving me insane faster than I can fly a broomstick because..... I can’t tell anyone because.... I......... I can’t.......” Marlene trailed off, looking horrified at herself.

“Because it’s not a guy. The person you like, they’re a girl, aren’t they?” Lily questioned softly. Marlene looked up at her, absolutely devastated. But she held it together as she nodded slowly.

“Oh Marly, c’mere,” Lily said, opening her arms. Marlene fell into them with a sob.

“Shhhh, shh. It’s ok, I got you, I got you,” Lily soothed, rubbing Marlene’s back as she cried. “It’s ok, it’s ok. I got you, you’re safe. It’s ok.”

“I’m sorry,” Marlene gasped out. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.....”

“Hey, hey, no, don’t say that. You’re ok, Marly, you’re ok. You have nothing to be sorry for,” Lily said, pulling back to grab Marlene’s face and look at her. She could see tear tracks running down her face in the fire’s light. Lily wiped them away unthinkingly. Marlene recoiled as though she’d been burned.

“I’m sorry. I get it, I, I shouldn’t, I’m sorry, I’ll sleep in the common room or something, I’m sorry,” Marlene continued to try and talk between sobs, avoiding eye contact with Lily.

“What? No you won’t. What are you talking about?” Lily asked.

“I’m sure you don’t want me in the dorms anymore, it’s ok, I get it. You think I’m a creep, they said you would-“

“What? No, of course you’re staying in the dorm, and I don’t think you’re a creep. Who told you that?” Lily asked, angry for her friend. Marlene shrugged, but there were tears in her eyes.

“My parents.”

“Jesus fuck, Marly, are you ok? Wait, dumb question, sorry. I mean, Jesus, how could they say that to you? I’m gonna kick their asses so hard, I swear-“

“Calm down, Red, it’s ok. Not like they’re wrong,” Marlene said, hate in her eyes. Lily realized the hate was for herself and not her parents, which made her even angrier.

“You’re not a creep, Marly. Do you think Remus and Sirius are creeps for staying in their dorm? Do you think there’s something wrong with them?” Lily asked.

“Merlin, of course not, Lily, what does that have to do with- oh,” Marlene quieted down as she realized what point Lily was trying to make.

“Exactly. If they’re not creeps, why are you?” Lily said.

Marlene smiled a bit. Lily grinned to herself, and the patted the couch beside her.

“Does anyone else know?” She asked as Marlene sat down.

“Not yet, but I was gonna tell Sirius tomorrow or something,” Marlene answered.

“Ok. Why don’t you tell me more about this girl you like?”Lily teased, making Marlene blush.

The two spent a long time talking, and in the morning, if the two girls looked unusually tired but happy as they ate breakfast, no one could guess why.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there, guys, gals, and non-binary pals. Hope you liked that chapter. I know the coming out scene got angsty, sorry about that, I just feel like some internalized homophobia would make sense, you know? Sirius might have to deal with that too, considering his family’s full of assholes. Anyway, leave a comment and a kudos if you liked it, and tell me how to improve if you didn’t. Hope you all have a good day/night.


	5. Arson, Quidditch, and Detention

Lily was enjoying some peace and quiet in the library. It was Friday, and she had gotten all her homework done, and the first Quidditch game, Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw, was the next day. Lily was reading about healing Potions when Sirius Black walked up to her.

“Hey, Red. Mind if we talk?” He asked quietly.

“Why not?” Lily answered, closing her book. Sirius sat down beside her.

“So, uh,” He ran a hand through his hair. “Micks told me.”

“She said she was going to. How did it go?” Lily asked. 

“It was fine, she just said it outright. I hugged her and told her that it was my life’s goal to set her up with the perfect girl now,” Sirius answered with a grin. Lily smiled back.

“Thanks for being so good about it,” she said.

“Yeah, of course,” he replied. “But I was wondering... did she tell you what her parents said?”

“She told me they said we would think she was a creep,” Lily said, anger coming back to her as she recalled how her friend’s parents had made her feel about herself.

“Yeah, well, that’s not all they said. They told her that she was a freak, and an abomination. They disowned her, Lily,” Sirius responded, equal parts angry and sad.

“What?” Lily exclaimed, almost disbelieving. She had met Marlene’s parents. They weren’t awful, and they seemed to really love their daughter. But one look into Sirius’s eyes and she could tell it was true. “How could they do that? How dare they do that, I’m gonna-“

“Whoa, Red, hold on, maybe don’t go attack them right now,” Sirius said, catching Lily by the arm as she stood up. “I don’t think you could even make it out of the castle.”

“I could try!” Lily cried angrily.

“Ok, calm down. This is definitely why Micks didn’t mention this to you. None of us have enough money to bail you out of Azkaban, Red.” Sirius pulled Lily back into her seat as she continued to threaten the McKinnons.

“I’m gonna kill them, I swear. Oh Merlin, wait until Alice finds out.”

“Shit,” Sirius said, eyes widening. “She’ll burn their bloody house down.”

“Cas will help her. So will I. Mary would probably just be the lookout,” Lily mused, planning the arson in her mind.

“Ok, that might be a step too far,” Sirius said, seeing the calculating look in Lily’s eyes.

“Didn’t James and Remus flood your house when the Blacks kicked you out?” Lily asked.

“Fair enough,” Sirius said after a pause. “Look, Micks said I could tell you, but if you could keep it quiet, at least until she comes out to everyone, that would be grand.”

“Yeah, of course,” Lily replied. Sirius nodded and began to walk away. “Hey Sirius,” Lily called. He turned around. “Did Marly tell you anything about the girl she likes?”

“Just a basic description. You?”

“Same here. If we ever figure out who it is, wanna help set them up?” Lily asked mischievously.

Sirius’s eyes twinkled. “Count me in, Red.”

————————————————————————————————————

The next day was clear and chilly.

“Perfect day for it,” Marlene said cheerfully at breakfast.

“Plus, the Ravenclaw’s had to put in one of their backup Beaters. The other is sick,” Dorcas added.

“Are we just going to get used to you knowing Quidditch things because of Marlene?” Alice asked serenely. Both Marlene and Dorcas blushed.

“Hey McKinnon,” James said as he slid into a seat beside her. “You ready?”

“Born ready, Potter. Worst player on the team has to get snacks for the victory party,” Marlene challenged.

“You’re on, Micks,” Sirius said as he arrived, tugging Remus towards their friends by the hand. Remus’s nose was stuck in a book, as usual.

“What are you reading, Remus?” Dorcas asked. She and Remus fell into a discussion about the history of wandmaking. Marlene smiled softly at Dorcas as she talked animatedly. Lily and Sirius shared a look. ‘I wonder if,’ Lily thought. ‘No, I would have noticed by now if Marls was into Cas.’

“So Evans, wish me luck?” James teased, his typical grin making an appearance. Lily rolled her eyes.

“Gryffindor? Of course I wish them luck. You, on the other hand? I hope you get a bludger to the face.”

“I’m truly wounded, Evans. How could you?” James continued. Lily pointedly ignored him.

“Hey, would you walk me down to the pitch?” James asked, suddenly serious. Lily almost said no, but she saw the plea in his eyes.

“Alright Potter,” she answered. They both got up and began to leave.

“Get it Evans!” Marlene shouted. Alice wolf-whistled, and Dorcas laughed at their antics.

“Shut up you meth ferret!” Lily yelled back. Dorcas laughed even harder.

James and Lily walked out of the castle in silence. But soon Lily’s curiosity got the better of her.

“Why did you ask me to come down with you?” She asked.

“I wanted to apologize,” James said simply. Lily stopped dead.

“You, apologize? Do you even know how?”

“Very funny, Evans. Please don’t make this harder.”

“Ok, sorry. Go on,” Lily said. James cleared his throat.

“I’m sorry I called you a hypocrite in Hogsmeade. It was uncalled for. I was still mad about that git insulting Moony and Padfoot, and I took it out on you. I apologize,” he said seriously.

“It’s alright, I forgive you. And you weren’t really wrong, I would have done the exact same thing. I just assumed that you were in the wrong and that was dumb of me. If it was in defense of your friends, I can’t really disagree with it,” Lily said.

“Thanks,” James replied. “And it wasn’t dumb to assume I was being a jackass. I was all last year, and even a bit before that. But I’m trying to be better now.”

“I’ll try not to make it harder on you,” Lily responded as they reached the pitch. “Right, well, I’m gonna go save some seats. Good luck.”

“Hey, you did wish me luck.” James grinned.

“Did I? Must have been a mistake,” Lily called over her shoulder.

————————————————————————————————————

“AND GRYFFINDOR LEADS WITH A SCORE OF 90 TO 70. PASS FROM RAVENCLAW’S WILLIAMS TO SMITH, WHO FUMBLES TO GRYFFINDOR CHASER CATHY RODGERS, WHO RAVENCLAW BEATER TARGETS TO NO AVAIL. THAT’S RIGHT, DUMBASSES, MY BOYFRIEND IS BETTER THAN YOU. WORK IT BABE,” Remus, the appointed Quidditch commentator screamed into the mic. Lily could practically hear McGonagall’s sigh of disappointment over the cheering and screaming. 

“JAMES POTTER ALMOST GRABS THE SNITCH AGAIN, ATTA BOY PRONGS, YOU’LL GET IT. OOH, EXCELLENT BLUDGER HIT FROM MARLENE MCKINNON, YOU GO GIRL.”

“Go Marlene!” Dorcas and Lily shouted. Alice was screaming too loudly to even notice.

“AND RAVENCLAW CHASERS PREVENTED FROM SCORING BY THE SEXY BEAST FRANK LONGBOTTOM. WHY DO YOU HAVE TO BE IN A COMMITTED HETERO RELATIONSHIP FRANK.”

Frank blew a kiss towards Remus jokingly. Alice laughed harder than anyone else, used to Remus’s spirited commentary.

“OH MY GOD, LOOK AT THAT.”

“Jesus Christ Potter!” Lily screeched as the Seeker went into a nosedive.

“OH JESUS FUCK JAMES YOU’RE GONNA DIE. YOU ARE GOING TO DIE YOU NARCISSISTIC PIGHEADED IDIOTIC-OH THANK GOD HE DIDN’T CRASH. GRYFFINDOR SEEKER JAMES POTTER SNATCHES THE SNITCH, GRYFFINDOR WINS. IF YOU ALL WILL EXCUSE ME, THERE’S A VERY SEXY GRYFFINDOR BEATER THAT REQUIRES MY ATTENTION.” Remus finished, dashing from the commentator stand before Professor McGonagall could catch him.

“Stay away from me Lupin,” Marlene shouted, flying towards her friends in the stands. “Incoming!”

“Jesus Marly no!” Lily screamed running from her life. Dorcas was too late though, and Marlene fell onto her as she crashed, laughing like a maniac. Or at least, laughing until she realized Dorcas was laying still beneath her, as Marlene practically straddled her waist. She blushed and got up, extending a hand to Dorcas.

“Sorry Cas. You alright?” Marlene asked, helping Dorcas up.

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Dorcas answered, also blushing furiously. Marlene turned away, only to see Lily with a smirk and raised eyebrow. 

“Shut up,” Marlene mouthed as they walked away.

————————————————————————————————————

“Let’s hear some noise for our Quidditch team!” Remus shouted to a common room full of celebrating Gryffindors, who all cheered in response.

“And let’s hear it for Remus’s excellent commentary!” Frank shouted from his place next to Alice. This got an even louder cheer, making Sirius kiss a blushing Remus on the cheek proudly.

“Hey, James, time to make good on your bet. You took forever to catch the snitch, mate,” Marlene said, clapping James on the shoulder. He groaned good-naturedly.

“Ugh, fine. But I’ll need help.”

“Take Lily,” Dorcas answered. “She’s not doing much anyway.”

“I’m silently judging everyone in this room,” Lily replied in annoyance. Dorcas just rolled her eyes.

“Please take her Potter.”

“Alright. Wanna come to the kitchens, Evans?” James asked. The question was teasing but it seemed like he was genuinely asking if she was ok with it.

“Yeah, fine,” Lily answered, heading for the door, James behind her.

“So what did you think of the game today?” James asked.

“I think you almost killed yourself grabbing the snitch,” Lily answered.

“Is that concern I detect, Evans?” James joked.

“Not really,” Lily snarked back.

“A wound, a wound. A plague on both your houses,” James cried dramatically, clutching his robes.

“Are you trying to quote Mercutio?” Lily asked.

“So someone’s read Shakespeare,” James said, clearly impressed.

“Yeah, and that someone is not you, Potter,” Lily teased as they made it into the kitchens.

“Mister Potter, Miss Evans! How can we help you?” An eager house elf asked.

“Hiya, Kitsy. Could you please get us a bunch of pastries and chocolate, and a ton of butterbeer as well?” James asked politely. 

“Of course, sir.” Kitsy disappeared into the kitchens. Lily stared at James in slight surprise.

“What?” James said, rubbing the back of his neck. He seemed almost self-conscious.

“Nothin,” Lily replied. “Just didn’t know you were capable of being so polite.”

“Gee, thanks.” James sobered up slightly. “We have a house elf at my house named Georgie.”

“Georgie?” Lily asked, slightly confused by the house elf’s unusually normal name.

“Yeah,” James responded. “The little guy took care of me all the time when my parents were gone, and picked up after me, and taught me some classic pranks. I respect him too much to ever disrespect another house elf.”

“Huh.” Lily grabbed some food as Kitsy returned with their order. “Thanks, Kitsy.”

“Thank you very much, Kitsy,” James said. The two left the kitchens, arms full of refreshments.

“So, Dorcas knows a lot about Gryffindor Quidditch suddenly,” Lily said abruptly. “Have you ordered your players to corrupt our normal, nerdy selves?”

James laughed. “Unfortunately, the idea didn’t occur to me. Marly goes on rants, doesn’t she? That’s why Dorcas knows a bit?”

“Yep,” Lily snickered as they walked. “Players, broomsticks and equipment, teams, all kinds of stuff. Marly never stops talking about Quidditch.”

“Yeah, well, she is aiming to play professionally. I think she thinks she has to know all that stuff to have a chance,” James replied.

“That’s ridiculous,” Lily scoffed. “She’s the best Beater Hogwarts has seen in decades.”

“Try telling her that. People think I overwork myself at practice, I’m surprised she’s not dead yet. Shows up early, stays out late, pushes herself harder than any other player on the team.”

“Sounds like Marly,” Lily nodded as they reached the common room again. James swept his arm towards the Fat Lady’s portrait.

“After you, m’lady.”

Lily snickered. “Codswallop,” she said to the portrait, which swung open to reveal an even wilder party than the one they had left. They shared an exasperated look about their fellow Gryffindors, and then went in.

————————————————————————————————————

“Did you know Potter has a house elf?” Lily asked, staring at the ceiling from her bed. All of the girls were forced into the dorms after lights out was called, but everyone except Mary was still too energetic too sleep.

“Yeah, Georgie, right?” Dorcas responded from her own bed.

“Yeah.” Lily sat up to look at Dorcas. “How did you know that?”

“I’ve met him,” Dorcas answered nonchalantly. “Sweet little guy, makes great chocolate cake.” Suddenly every girl in the room was asking questions.

“How did you meet him-“

“Why were you at Potter’s house-“

“Because she has a crush on him, remember?”

“Yeah but he’s into you Lils.”

“Guys, we’re skipping over the fact that Dorcas has been to Potter’s house,” Alice said just as Lily was about to smack Marlene.

“Oh right,” Lily said. “Dorcas, darling?”

“Yes, lovely Lily?” Dorcas responded.

“Care to tell us why you were at Potter’s house?” Lily asked.

“Not particularly,” Dorcas teased. “I was at his Christmas party, guys. We live near him and Mrs. Potter invited us. I spent the whole time talking with Remus anyway.”

“Sounds like true love to me. Mrs. Dorcas Potter-“ Lily got hit in the face by a pillow that flew from Dorcas’s bed. She tossed it back.

“My little baby’s growing up,” Alice said, pretending to wipe away a tear. A pillow hit her too.

“Marly? You’ve been awfully quiet. What do you think about the future Mrs. Potter?” Lily asked. Marlene seemed to snap out of a trance and traded her slight grimace for a grin.

“I’m sure they’ll be very happy together,” she said. Not a single pillow was even thrown from Dorcas’s bed this time.

“Well, on that note, I’m headed to bed.” Lily dropped back onto her mattress as Marlene turned out the lights. “Goodnight ladies.”

“Night Lils,” Marlene replied.

“Good night Lily.” Alice yawned.

“Fuck off ginger.” Was heard from Dorcas.

“Night Dorcas.”

“Goodnight Princess.” 

————————————————————————————————————

The next few days passed without incident. Lily was almost surprised by that, considering how chaotic life at Hogwarts was. She was less surprised when she found almost her entire friend group in detention.

6 hours earlier.........

“We have the Ministry crony today,” Dorcas said, prompting a round of groans. Jackson Rein had not improved throughout his time at Hogwarts. He only ever seemed to teach straight from the textbook, and they barely got a chance to use the few spells they were taught.

“How are we supposed to prepare for NEWTS with him teaching?” Marlene muttered.

“Keep practicing on our own, I guess,” Remus responded.

Ever since it became apparent that Rein was not going to teach them properly, the girls and the Marauders had been training together in a secret passage in the fourth floor. The space was hidden behind a mirror, and you didn’t have to say a password, but had to high-five yourself in the mirror to get in.

“Yeah, alright. Just wish we had a better teacher, you know?” Alice said. Everyone nodded in agreement.

“He’s pretty useless. Remus, you’re a far better teacher than him,” Lily remarked. Remus had taken the role of teacher in their practice sessions, and he was very good at it, always knowing what to say to encourage everyone to keep improving.

“Why, thank you, Lily,” Remus grinned. 

Classes throughout most of the day were fairly normal. McGonagall was as intimidating as ever, Marlene continued to be awful at Herbology, and Charms was relatively easy. The first incident was in Potions, when Alice blew up a cauldron and a piece of it hit Professor Slughorn in the face.

“Miss Prewett, if you would please, for Merlin’s sake, pay attention to the instructions,” Slughorn wheezed.

“Sorry sir,” Alice said.

“Just come by after class today to help clean up,” Slughorn said.

“Yes sir,” Alice replied. Lily nudged her.

“You know it’s not a punishment, right? He’s too old to see the whole mess properly, he’d slip on something within twenty minutes without help.”

Alice laughed and returned to trying to salvage her notes.

The next incident was during DADA. Predictably, almost no one was listening to Rein’s lecture. James and Sirius were passing notes, Peter was folding paper into origami swans and flying them over to Mary, and Remus was dutifully taking notes, but his eyes were noticeably glazed over. Marlene and Dorcas were talking quietly, and Alice was gazing at Frank, who would look back towards her and blush occasionally. Lily almost retched at their lovesick behavior.

“And as you can imagine, wizards are not to use magic to protect muggles in this dangerous time-“ Rein continued his lecture in a monotone voice.

“Wait, what?” Dorcas said loudly. Lily also snapped to attention, and the whole class seemed to stop what they were doing to listen.

“Many wizards are risking exposure to protect their muggle neighbors, which is particularly unwise. Now-“ Rein said, clearly annoyed at the interruption.

“Why is it unwise to protect muggles?” Dorcas asked.

“If they wanted our help, they shouldn’t have forced us into hiding. They’re doing fine on their own,” Rein replied.

“Muggles are the ones Voldemort is targeting! Why shouldn’t we help them? They aren’t the same people who forced wizards into hiding!” Dorcas argued loudly. Many of the students nodded, but seemed too frightened to speak up.

“Miss Meadowes, wizards must come first in these dangerous times, we are the only ones who can fight You-Know-Who.”

“That’s bullshit and you know it! Muggles deserve protection as much as us!” Dorcas answered.

“I’m sure that someone in detention will agree with you,” Rein responded. Dorcas turned white.

“Hold on,” Marlene said. “She gets a detention because, how shocking, she thinks people have a right to live?”

“You can join her in detention, Miss McKinnon. Everyone has a right to live, but wizards come first,” Rein answered.

“That’s horrible and almost as racist as my family,” Sirius said loudly.

“Detention, Mr. Black.”

“You can’t just put everyone who has a different opinion in detention,” Lily cried out frustratedly. Rein was a useless teacher but she didn’t think he would be so awful.

“Detention for you as well, Miss Evans.”

“That’s shite,” James called out. “Evans is doing nothing wrong.”

“Mr. Potter, I trust you already know what I’m going to say,” Rein responded. 

“Are you trying to reach a quota or something?” Remus snarked. Rein didn’t even talk, just put a detention slip on his desk.

“Class is dismissed,” Rein said. “Everyone who has a detention can report to the Deputy Headmistress.”

Everyone packed up, Lily fuming silently. ‘Openly racist and we get in trouble for being decent fucking people. How dare you think people should live? Detention for you!’ She thought angrily.

“Come on, let’s go to McGonagall,” Marlene said, grabbing Lily by the elbow, already holding on to Dorcas’s wrist. They headed toward the professor’s office, James, Sirius, and Remus trailing behind them.

“Why didn’t anyone else say anything?” Dorcas asked angrily. 

“Alice is already in trouble with Slughorn, I imagine she didn’t want to make anything worse. Frank looked like he wanted to, but when Rein started handing out detentions like grandmas hand out candy he kept his mouth shut. We told Pete not to say anything, we have a rule that at least one Marauder has to be available when the others are in detention,” Sirius said. 

“How did you know about Alice?” Lily asked curiously.

“Cas told Prongs,” he answered. Lily looked towards Dorcas with a raised eyebrow.

“He asked if anything interesting happened in Potions, I told him about Alice Explosion number, what is it now, 200?” Dorcas defended. Lily only smirked.

“Is something happening?” James whispered to Remus. “Are they communicating non-verbally somehow?”

“No clue,” Remus whispered back as they reached McGonagall’s office. Sirius burst through the door.

“You’re not gonna fuckin believe this Minnie!”

“Try again,” McGonagall said, not even looking up from a paper. Sirius left and closed the door quietly, only to burst through again.

“Boy do we have a scoop for you!”

“Not quite, Mr. Black, but it is an improvement. To what do I owe this headache?” She asked dryly. Remus handed over the note Rein wrote on the detention slip. McGonagall read it expressionlessly.

“You said Rein was teaching bullshit?” She looked at Dorcas. Dorcas nodded sheepishly.

“You said he didn’t think people deserved to live?” McGonagall turned to Marlene. She nodded resolutely, still holding Dorcas’s wrist.

“You called him racist?” She turned to Sirius, who grinned and did finger-guns.

“You told him off for giving out detentions?” McGonagall switched to looking at Lily, who nodded as well.

“You called it shite?” She looked at James, who winked and saluted.

“And you accused him of having a quota of detention-giving to reach?” McGonagall finally looked to Remus.

“I certainly hope he’s reached it,” he answered solemnly. McGonagall sighed. She left the room for a minute.

“Where is she going?” Dorcas asked. “Is there a secret room we’re being locked in?”

“No, but Filch would love that,” Marlene snorted. “Relax, it’s just McGonagall. She won’t be too bad.”

“Good point,” Dorcas responded.

McGonagall returned with a small tin. “You understand why you got detentions?” She asked. They all nodded. “You know that no matter how awful a teacher is, you can’t mouth off to them?” Once again, everyone nodded. “Excellent,” McGonagall said. “Detention over.” She took the lid off the tin. “Grab a biscuit on your way out.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you liked this chapter! If you did, leave a kudos and a comment, if you didn’t, tell me how to improve. Hope you all have a good day/night.


	6. A Decent Day

“Do you think birds are confused by Quidditch? Cuz humans can’t fly, but sometimes we can, but then later we can’t, but then we can-“

“Marlene what the entire fuck.”

“I’m serious.” Marlene sat up from her place on the floor of the common room. “We can’t fly unless we’re on tiny fuckin trees, that’s gotta be weird. ‘Yeah, humans can’t fly unless they take apart our goddamn real estate, then they use the walls of our homes to propel themselves into the air for sport. Sorry it was your house this time, Gary.’ If I was a bird, I would be fucking pissed. I would attack every Quidditch player I saw. Like, honestly, fuck you for burning my house down to play a goddamn game. You think this is a game, you fucktrumpet? I’ll peck your eyes out, you piece of shit. I am Gary of the Sparrows, and I will have my fucking revenge.”

“Again I say; what the actual genuine fuck Marlene. Why is the bird named Gary? How high are you?” Lily asked from beside her. Saturday night common room sleepovers were a tradition they had, along with Sirius. He had passed out after drinking too much fire whiskey though.

“His parents named him Gary, not me. Are you insulting Gary of the Sparrows, Red? And also, not high, just drunk. Really drunk. That’s supposed to help, right? Help forget about shit?”

“What are you trying to forget?” Lily asked.

“That I don’t have a place to go back to for winter holidays. That the girl I like, maybe even love, is straight. Also possibly into a guy I know. A guy I’m friends with. And he has to go and be a decent fucking person so I can’t even be mad.”

“Fuck. You got some stuff happening, huh girl?” Lily asked sympathetically. Marlene just snorted, which woke Sirius.

“Wuz happenin?” He slurred his words, still a bit drunk. “I miss Remus.”

“Marlene is angsty cuz she’s homeless and in love with Dorcas.”

“Hey, I was like that last year,” Sirius replied. “Except I was into Remus.”

“Do you ever shut up about Remus? Also, I never said I was in love with Dorcas,” Marlene grumbled.

“You’re not denying it bitch,” Sirius answered. “And no I won’t shut up about Remus, he’s the stars in the sky, the sun that makes plants grow, the gentle rain that nourishes them. He is a colorful stained glass window, broken on the ground, but the sun shines through him and he’s still beautiful. He-“

“Shut up you worthless whore.”

“No, let him keep going, that was poetry. Continue, Sirius. What do you think about Remus’s eyes?” Lily asked.

“Oh my fucking Merlin-“

“Ugh. Not this again.”

————————————————————————————————————

“You three look...... alive,” Alice said as the three dumbasses (Sirius calls them The Gals and Greatness) settled in at the breakfast table. Lily grunted. Sirius and Marlene ignored her.

“What happened to you?” Alice asked.

“Common room sleepover,” Sirius answered with a groan.

“Ha, told you they were dumb enough to keep doing those,” Frank said. Alice stuck her tongue out like the mature young adult she was.

“Hey, those are an illustrious tradition starting all the way back in the beginning of fifth year,” Marlene answered indignantly.

“Ah yes, the illustrious tradition of getting drunk in the common room and falling asleep on top of each other. How honorable,” Dorcas teased as she entered and sat down next to Marlene, who blushed almost imperceptibly.

“Shut it, Meadowes. It’s too early for your snark.”

“Make me, McKinnon,” Dorcas dared. Marlene clenched her jaw for a few seconds, then turned back to her breakfast. Dorcas grinned smugly, then helped herself to some sausage from Lily’s plate.

“I wanna die,” Sirius pouted. “And my boyfriend’s in the library and refuses to comfort me.”

“Could that be because your pain is self-inflicted?” Alice said sarcastically.

“You know, that’s a possibility,” Sirius returned. Alice just rolled her eyes.

“Remus should comfort you, you spent an hour composing sonnets for him,” Lily teased. Sirius shoved at her shoulder.

“Shut it, Evans.”

“No way, I wish you had a video,” Alice laughed.

“Well, actually,” Lily said mischievously, pulling a camera from her robes. “It’s all on here.”

“Give me that camera, Red!” Sirius cried out, lunging for it. Lily hopped out of reach and laughed.

“Catch me if you can, Black.”

————————————————————————————————————

Later, after Sirius had been suitably teased following the showing of the video, Lily grabbed both Sirius and Marlene and pulled them into an empty classroom.

“Ok, so things were said last night and I want to make sure we’re all on the same page,” she said. The other two nodded.

“Marlene, you can stay with any one of us for as long as you need to, nobody would mind,” Lily said confidently.

“Yeah. James lives in a mansion, nobody would be upset if you needed a place to stay, there’s like 20 guest rooms,” Sirius said.

“Ok. Ok, yeah. Thank you. I just didn’t want to cause any trouble or anything, make you worry unnecessarily.” Marlene smiled faintly.

“Sure, Marly. Don’t worry, we got you. And uh, one more thing?” Lily asked.

“Um, ok?” Marlene responded.

“Dorcas, huh?” Sirius teased. Lily nodded as Marlene dropped her smile.

“Yeah. But I think she might be into James. Like for real,” Marlene answered.

“They have been kinda close recently. Dorcas was around quite a bit during the summer,” Sirius mused.

“Yeah, but who cares? You’re Marlene McKinnon, you could have anyone in this castle. Potter is a second-rate arrogant prat. If he’s your only competition, you’re sure to win,” Lily argued.

“He’s less arrogant lately,” Sirius said, “but Lily is right. Not about James, but about you. Have some fucking confidence you slut.”

“Thanks, future prostitute,” Marlene replied. “Dorcas is straight though. What am I supposed to do, seduce her away from James and into lesbianism?”

“Or bisexuality. Don’t be a fucking biphobe you dumbass,” Lily said.

“Damn, you guys are pouring on the love, huh?”

“Friends who swear are friends who care, Micks.”

“Whatever, Black. Hey, I wanted to ask you guys. Do you think it’d be ok if I came out to the group?” Marlene asked slightly nervously.

“Yeah, I’m sure it’d be fine. We’ve established that our group is pretty accepting,” Lily said.

“Yeah,” Sirius answered. “You’ll be alright.”

“Ok, good. Yeah, it’ll be fine. Yeah,” Marlene muttered nervously.

“Hey, we’ll be right there with you when you do, I promise. What’s the plan?” Lily asked, holding Marlene’s wrist. Sirius nodded.

“I figured I would say it during one of our practice sessions,” Marlene answered.

“That’s not a bad idea. Tell everyone all at once.” Sirius mused.

“Yeah. I can totally do this.”

————————————————————————————————————

“I can’t do this.”

Lily looked at her friend, who was almost on the verge of panic as the study session ended. They had been dueling for the past few minutes, putting their knowledge of defensive spells to the test. 

“Hey, it’ll be ok Marly. If it’s not, I promise to hex everyone in here,” Lily said.

“Ok. Yeah. I got this, I got this. Totally,” Marlene said under her breath.

“Nice job, everyone. Today was really good. Peter, you’re definitely improving on the shield charm. Alice, you might want to work on wand movements a little. James, Sirius, stop messing around. I want to see what you’re actually capable of, not who can turn the others’ robes pink the fastest. Lily, you’ve improved on offensive spells, well done there. Frank and Marlene, I want you to to work on nonverbal spells, you seem a bit shaky on those. Anyone got anything to say?” Remus said. He was an excellent teacher, always managing to keep everyone in line but still having fun, the right amounts of encouraging and critical.

“Yes. Professor Lupin is really hot and I wouldn’t mind seeing him more often. Perhaps in bed-“

“Shut up Sirius.” Remus blushed. Everyone else snickered.

“Um, I actually have something I want to tell you guys. I’m kind of a private person, so this takes a lot, but here goes. I’m gay,” Marlene said nervously, not meeting anyone’s eyes, gazing at the floor instead. She glanced up when she finished, expecting to see confusion and disgust. Instead she was practically attacked by Alice in a hug.

“Still love you kiddo. Not gonna change that,” Alice said as she held her friend. Marlene smiled shakily.

“Cool,” James said. “We can talk about girls together now.” Marlene just laughed at that.

“That’s great Marlene,” Mary said kindly. “I’m glad you trust us enough to tell us.”

“Once you get a girlfriend we can go on a double date,” Remus teased.

“Not happening Lupin,” Marlene answered.

“The girlfriend or the double date?” Sirius laughed. Marlene elbowed him.

“Well, no making moves on my girl,” Peter teased. 

“I wouldn’t even if I wanted to Pete.” Marlene laughed.

“Dorcas? You’ve been kinda quiet,” James said, pulling everyone’s attention towards her as she fiddled with her wand.

“What? Oh, I mean, it’s great. It’s great. Sorry, I got distracted,” Dorcas said unconvincingly.

“Right,” Sirius drawled disbelievingly. “Distracted.”

“Yeah. But really, Marls, that’s great. I’m glad you trust us. I hope you realize nothing will change,” Dorcas said, gazing at Marlene. Marlene snorted.

“Yeah, nothing except my status as a McKinnon.”

“What do you mean?” James asked. Lily grabbed her friend’s wrist in support.

“My parents disowned me. I’m the next Sirius,” Marlene joked. Her eyes were devoid of humor, however.

“What the fuck!” Alice shouted, and began marching towards the door, no doubt on her way to murder the McKinnons. Frank caught her around the waist and lifted her on to a desk.

“You can’t be an Auror if you’re in Azkaban, Alice,” he said sternly.

“Bitch I hope they’re fucking running, because I will chase them down-“

“You can’t be an Auror if you’re in Azkaban,” Frank repeated slightly louder. Alice looked at him dubiously.

“I could try. I could give it a go and see how it went, and if it worked out, I’m in the clear-“

“Say it with me Alice. I can’t be an Auror if I’m in Azkaban.”

“I could.”

“Alice.”

“Ugh, fine. You win. I can’t be an Auror if I’m in Azkaban. Happy?” Alice said sarcastically as the others giggled.

“Depends, are you gonna ignore what I say?” Frank asked.

“Maybe.” Alice pouted.

Nobody noticed Dorcas and James slip away during the conversation. Nobody except Lily.

————————————————————————————————————

“Hey, Potter, wait up,” Lily called. Quidditch practice had ended, and she was waiting to get James alone so they could talk. He slowed down, clearly waiting for her to join him.

“Alright, Evans?” He asked. “I don’t recall doing anything awful as of late, so if you’re here to tell me off-“

“No, no, just...... wanted to talk, I guess,” Lily answered.

“Ok then. What’s up?” 

“Are you and Dorcas dating?” She asked bluntly.

“What?” James laughed. “No, Evans. Of course not. What gave you that idea?”

“You two have seemed close lately, and you both snuck off after Marly’s coming out thing, and I guess it would just make sense.”

“We live near each other, so we hang out a bit. We’re not dating. And as for the sneaking off thing.......” James’s eyes lit up with mischief. “We hatched a brilliant plan.”

“Why?” Lily asked. “What for?”

“Well, obviously we’re all upset at the McKinnons, right?” James asked rhetorically, slinging an arm around Lily’s shoulders. She nodded.

“But Marly said we couldn’t go after them.”

“She did say that, yes,” James said. “But we’re not going after them. Rather, having a go at them.”

“Potter?” Lily ground out.

“Yes, Lily, dearest flower?”

“Just explain.”

————————————————————————————————————

“Anyone want to explain why my parents got nine Howlers yesterday?” Marlene asked as she walked into the common room where the rest of the group was.

“No clue.”

“Haven’t the foggiest.”

“Nine Howlers?”

“Never heard of a Howler.”

“Never heard of the number nine.”

“Perhaps they were selling drugs and some good samaritans exposed them.”

“What’s a parent?”

“I was busy solidifying my popularity with a prostitution ring. They’re remarkable people, sell their bodies and donate the profits to the environment-“

“What the fuck Sirius,” Lily exclaimed, throwing a piece of parchment at him. He just laughed.

“Look, if we knew something, and I’m not saying we do, perhaps your parents got Howlers because they insulted one of the best people to walk the earth,” James said kindly.

Marlene looked amused. “Thanks, guys.”

“What do you mean? We didn’t do anything,” Alice said brightly. Marlene laughed, and so life went on.

At least until the next Saturday.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there. Not sure anyone reads this fic,but I’m gonna keep posting anyway lol. Sorry it’s been so long if you do read it, life got real busy real fast. About the camera thing in the beginning of the chapter, I know muggle devices and electronics aren’t supposed to work, but just roll with it. Tell me how to improve, or leave a comment about anything, I love getting them. Or, if you don’t have the time to comment, you could just hit the kudos button. Takes no time at all. Thanks for reading!


	7. Lily Evans and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

“WAKE UP WAKE UP WAKE UP”

“Jesus Christ son of a fucking virgin what the hell.” Lily burrowed further into her blankets despite the overgrown toddler shaking her and shouting.

“Hogsmeade visit today! Let’s go, let’s go!” Marlene bounced around the room, shaking everyone awake. Mary flipped her off, Dorcas followed Lily’s example and just cuddled into her bed further, and Alice grudgingly began to get ready.

“I really hate you, I hope you know that,” Lily said. Marlene grinned.

“Hate me in Hogsmeade, Red.”

“I hate you here, I hate you there, I can hate you anywhere. I can hate you on a plane, I can hate you on a train. I hate you everywhere, you see. Now fuck right off and leave me be.”

“What the fuck Lily?” Alice asked as Dr. Seuss released Lily from his possession and she returned to her non-poetic state.

“Honestly, that was better than Shakespeare. That was better than Oscar Wilde. Emily Dickinson is trembling in awe. Sappho herself praises you,” Marlene said. 

Dorcas merely tossed a pillow at the redhead, mumbling something about “murdering her and her fucking green eggs and ham.”

—————————————————————————————

“You were woken up early too, huh?” James asked as Lily plopped down near him.

“Marly is like a goddamn five year old on a sugar high during Christmas on Hogsmeade days,” she responded.

“Yeah, Pete’s like that too.”

“Really? I would have guessed Sirius.”

“Nah, he values his sleep too much,” James smirked. Lily stared for a few seconds. She remembered all the times she wanted to slap the smirk right off his face, but suddenly she can’t see anything besides the way it melts into an easy grin, how James’s brown eyes shine, and seem to have flecks of honey in them-

‘What the hell,’ Lily thought. ‘Why am I thinking about Potter’s eyes?’

“So, what are you planning to do at Hogsmeade?” Lily asked, attempting to hide her awkward train of thought.

“More of the same. Hogsmeade doesn’t really change, so its not like there’s much out of the ordinary to do,” James answered.

“Wow,” Lily said. “Even the infamous Marauders can’t find anything new or interesting about Hogsmeade?”

“You know, Evans, that sounds like a challenge,” James said. His eyes were glinting distractingly again, excited at the prospect of the dare.

“Maybe it was, Potter,” Lily said coyly. ‘What the fuck’ she thought. ‘Why am I flirting?’

‘Pretty boy,’ her hormones responded.

’Shut up,’ her rationality answered.

’Nice hair,’ her hormones replied. ’Smells good’

“Alright, Evans, I accept your challenge.” James broke into her argument with herself.

“I wasn’t aware I issued one,” Lily answered.

“Of course you did, and the terms are thus; if I show you something you didn’t know about Hogsmeade before, you have to wear my number at the next Quidditch game. If you win, well, what do you want if you win?”

“I want you to wear a pink tie and dye your hair bright purple for a week,” Lily responded.

“Damn, Evans, you don’t mess around. Alright, I agree to your terms. Do you agree to mine?”

“I do.”

“Excellent,” James said, offering his hand. “Then we have an accord.” Lily took his hand and shook it.

“Oh, and one more thing,” James said.

“What, Potter?” Lily asked.

“You’re not allowed to fall in love with me,” he replied cheekily.

“Won’t be a problem,” Lily answered. Her hormones didn’t agree, but she shut them up for the time being.

—————————————————————————————

“Hey, where do you think you’re going?” Marlene asked as Lily made to leave the group at the entrance to Hogsmeade. “Sneaking off to meet someone, are you?”

“I made a bet with Potter, so I’m hanging out with him for now. I’ll catch up to you once I win,” Lily responded.

“Once you’re done shagging, you mean,” Dorcas said. Alice snorted in surprise and Marlene laughed.

“Dorcas Eucalyptus Meadowes! Remus is a bad influence on you,” Lily said, pretending to be offended.

“My middle name is not eucalyptus, Princess. So stop saying random shit. It’s Elizabeth. You know it’s Elizabeth.”

“Sure. Just like Dorcas is your full name, and not actually Dorcastleshire.”

“It isn’t!” Dorcas cried out. Marlene was doubled over, and Alice was beginning to wheeze. 

“Sure. Anyway, gotta go.”

“Get back here Evans, you villianous hell-beast!”

 

James was waiting for Lily outside Honeydukes. “Ready for the Grand Hogsmeade Tour, Evans?”

“Lead the way,” Lily replied. James brought her into the shop.

“Uh, Potter?” Lily said as James looked around to make sure no one was watching them.

“Yes Evans?”

“If you’re gonna show me the secret passage in the basement, you should know that Sirius already showed it to me.”

“Damn it,” James sighed. “There goes Plan A.”

“Let’s hope your other plans are better,” Lily said.

James led her into the small bookshop next.

“Know of anything interesting here?” Lily asked, curious for once. She had actually never found much out of the ordinary in the store, so the fact that it was on Potter’s list made her worried about losing the bet.

“Only one of the oldest surviving maps of the Roman empire,” James said, convinced he had won.

“Oh, wow, you totally got me,” Lily said. “Or at least you would have if we were in fourth year. Cas showed me that during OWLS to cheer me up after I was stressed.”

“Shit,” James said. “You’re joking.”

“Nope,” Lily responded smugly.

“Why would you cure stress from studying by studying something you don’t need to know?” James asked in astonishment.

“I like knowing things, especially about Muggle stuff. I miss so much learning in the muggle world when I’m here, it feels like-“ Lily cut herself off. Semi-heavy topics should probably be off limits for now.

“Like what?” James gently prodded. And somehow, the soft curiosity was enough to get Lily to open up. 

“It feels like I’m not a part of either world. Because I have too much Muggle in me to be considered a full witch, and I have too much witch in me to be a Muggle, and now, I don’t belong anywhere.” Lily waited for James to call her ridiculous. Because of course she was a witch, and who cared about Muggles anyway? That’s what Severus had always said.

“Hey, Evans, look at me,” Jame said softly. “You are both Muggle and witch, and that’s incredible. You know what I’ve always admired about Muggles?” Lily shook her head. “Their ambition. Wizards have all this magic to help them, and yet muggles have been to the moon with nothing but dreams and, what’s it called? Science, I think. The moon, Evans! That’s amazing!”

Lily snorted as James gesticulated enthusiastically to express his excitement. “Didn’t know you kept up with that stuff, Potter.”

“Of course I do, Evans, it’s the fucking moon. So anytime anyone gives you shit for being part Muggle, tell them that. Tell them that Muggles have been to the fucking moon, and wizards haven’t. And if someone gives you shit for being a witch, hex them.”

Lily giggled as James finished his speech. “So what you’re saying is, if I’m part Muggle and part witch, I get the best of both worlds?”

“I said it in more words, but yeah,” James smiled back.

“Well, thank you for your rousing and encouraging speech,” Lily teased.

“Happy to help,” James said. “Now come on. We are gonna get some butterbeer, and then I am going to win this bet.”

“Not bloody likely, Potter.”

—————————————————————————————

“Hey everyone,” Lily said, sliding into the girls’s normal booth. They just stared at her.

“What?” Lily asked. “Is something on my face?”

They continued to stare.

“Ok, what the hell?” Lily asked.

“You were joking around with James when you came in,” Dorcas said in a hushed tone. “He was talking, and you laughed, then you answered, and he laughed.”

“Yes, Dorcas, that is what joking typically entails,” Lily answered.

“Since when do you do it with Potter?” Alice asked.

“He’s trying to be better, so I figure I can try too,” Lily responded. “Besides, he’s not so bad.”

“Not so bad?” Marlene questioned incredulously. “Who are you and what have you done with Lily Evans?” 

“Haha. Deeply amusing.”

“I’m serious,” Marlene said. “You have never liked James. Ever. You said he was too loud.”

“Pig-headed,” Dorcas added.

“Rude,” Alice contributed.

“Arrogant,” Mary threw in.

“Ok, yes, I did say all those things, but he’s trying to be less brash, kinder, less arrogant. If he’s going to try, I’m not going to discourage him by being rude,” Lily answered.

“She’s not going to discourage him. It must be love,” Dorcas teased. 

“Ok, shut it, Dorcastleshire Eucalyptus Meadowesbrookeland.”

“What the fuck.”

“Why have you done this. Why must we all have different names in this group.”

“Shut up, Marigoldilocks.”

“You shut up, Alicenturies of pain.”

“Who the fuck picked that?” Alice asked angrily.

“Marlene.”

“Marlene.”

“Marlene.”

“Definitely not me.”

“I suddenly have Marleniophobia.”

“The fuck is Marleniopohobia?” Marlene asked as Alice moved away from her.

“The fear of ever being anywhere near Marlene.”

“Bitch, me too, the fuck?”

“What’s even happening anymore?” Dorcas asked exasperatedly.

“Don’t worry about it,” Lily answered as James came up beside her with their drinks. 

“Hey, everyone. Evans, if you’re ok with it, I figured we could take our butterbeer to go? Unless you’d rather stay?” James asked, handing her a drink.

“Nah, I’m good to go. Don’t get into too much trouble, alright? Listen to your mother,” Lily said to the girls.

“I do what I want!” Marlene said. 

“You do what I want,” Dorcas answered. “Or else I’ll tell the house elves to stop making you chocolate biscuits.”

“Don’t you dare,” Marlene replied.

“Behave yourself then, and maybe I’ll sneak you into the kitchens to get some extras tonight.”

“I’m holding you to that,” Marlene said.

“It’s a date,” Dorcas responded. Marlene choked on her drink, and coughed violently as Mary pounded her back.

“Ok, let’s get away from these hooligans before they get themselves killed,” Lily said to James.

“Hooligans? Why I never-“ Alice said.

“You’re right,” James grinned. “These whippersnappers are too much to handle.”

“Whippersnappers?” Alice said, somehow even more offended, as James and Lily walked away.

“Where to next, tour guide?” Lily asked as they wandered down the street. 

“The Shrieking Shack,” James answered confidently. It’s time for me to win this thing.”

When they got to the Shack, they stood in silence for a few minutes, taking it in. Lily had seen it many times, but it never stopped being a bit creepy.

“I can’t believe Remus has to stay in there. It sounds awful,” Lily said.

“Yeah, but it’s Remus. He’s the strongest of all of us. He’d just make comments about the awful decor.”

“Good point,” Lily laughed. “Now what has you so sure that you can win the bet here?”

James grinned. “This,” he said, pulling on a low branch on a nearby tree. The branch moved to reveal-

“A hidden compartment? In a tree?” Lily asked in astonishment. 

“Neat, right?” James said. “Me and the boys found it in fourth year. We would hide our best prank supplies, notes, all kinds of stuff in it. It’s actually how Remus asked Sirius out. He was too nervous to do it face-to-face, so he hid a note in the tree and told Sirius to look for it. When Sirius came back, he just kissed Remus and the rest was history.”

“Not a bad story, Potter,” Lily said, imagining Remus being too awkward and forcing Sirius to look for the note. She giggled a bit.

“Does this mean I win?” James asked cheekily.

“Ugh. Yes, fine, you win,” Lily groaned good-naturedly.

“Yes! You have to wear the number seven on your back, Evans. I’m holding you to it.”

“Alright, alright,” Lily said. 

“Oh hey, I meant to ask. Is it just me, or do Marlene and Cas act like an old married couple?”

“Cas?” Lily asked. She had never heard Potter use Dorcas’s nickname before.

“Yeah. Oh, sorry, is that just something you guys call her? Cuz I can stop.”

“No, its fine, just never heard you say it. To answer the question, they do tend to flirt without realizing it quite a bit. And they’re very touchy with each other. And they pretend to bicker a lot. You know, you’re totally right,” Lily said.

“Does Marlene have feelings for Dorcas?” James asked quietly. Lily opened her mouth to answer. But then she heard something, what sounded like a distant shout.

“Did you hear that?” She asked James.

“Hear what?” He replied. His eyes focused on something above her, and then widened. “Evans, look.”

Lily whirled around. Smoke was coming up from behind them. “That’s coming from Hogsmeade,” she said, glancing at James, who’s face had gone pale.

“Ok,” he said. “What do we do?”

“Ok, um, um, alright. Ok, wands out and at the ready. Stay with me at all times. Can you do a Patronus?”

“Yeah,” James answered. “Takes a bit of effort, but I usually get it in a few tries.”

“Send a patronus to McGonagall. Tell her that Hogsmeade is under attack.” Lily tried to think as James sent the Patronus. She didn’t pay attention to him as she considered possible courses of action.

‘They didn’t cover this in prefect training,’ she thought wryly.

“Lily?” James asked.

“Yeah?”

“I sent the patronus. Now what?”

“Now we go to Hogsmeade. We have to get the younger students and possibly injured students out,” Lily replied. 

“Right. Let’s look for our group first so they can help us round everyone else up,” James suggested. Lily nodded, and the two began to move towards the burning village.

—————————————————————————————

When they arrived, it was chaos. Students were running around everywhere, firing off curses and hexes at random. James through up a shield charm as the pair waded through the waves of catastrophe.

“Sirius said he was headed to the Quidditch shop, and so was Marlene!” James shouted over the noise. 

“Ok. Remus, Alice, Frank, and Mary were headed to Honeydukes. Which one first?” Lily shouted back.

“We could split up,” James suggested. “We’d cover more ground quicker.”

“No, we’d be easier targets that way,” Lily answered. “Which place first?”

“Ok, I guess Honeydukes. Remus, Alice, and Frank are good fighters, and Mary is good at shields lately. We could use their help!”

“Honeydukes it is,”Lily said, blocking a hex flying at them. 

She and James advanced slowly, ducking into alleys to hide and make sure the path was clear before moving. It was still unknown as to who was attacking Hogsmeade.

The pair continued down a seemingly empty road when a jet of green light flew next to Lily’s shoulder. James pulled her away and into an alley as Lily fired a curse back. When the assailant dodged the curse, Lily finally got a good look at their face. 

“Shit,” she gasped. “Its Death Eaters. James, it’s the fucking Death Eaters.” Lily panted out the statement as her vision bean to go blurry. She couldn’t breathe, something was pressing down on her chest, it was too heavy, she was suffocating-

“Ok, ok. I need you to stay calm, Evans, can you do that for me?” James said as Lily began to hyperventilate. “Come on, Lily, just breathe, nice and easy. That’s it, come on Lily. You’re alright, you’re safe. I promise you’ll be ok. We’re all gonna be ok.”

Lily calmed down slowly, her breathing evening out and the scared look fading from her eyes. As she did, she noticed how James was holding her carefully against his body, his arms around her waist, pulling her into him gently. She shifted slightly, and James let go. Lily couldn’t tell if she was sad or happy about that. 

“Ok. I’m ok. Let’s go,” she said resolutely.

“Ok. I’ll do the shield, you hex him until we can get to cover.”

“Alright.”

James counted down, and they burst from they’re hiding place. James immediately produced a shield as Lily threw curse after curse at the Death Eater, who was forced to take cover. They made it down the street to Honeydukes and wrenched the door open.

“Lily?” Alice said, getting up from her place behind the counter. Lily ran to her and hugged her tightly as James did the same with Remus and Frank. 

“Where’s Mary?” Lily asked worriedly as she released her friend.

“Back here,” came a voice from behind the counter. Lily walked towards it. Sure enough, there was Mary. It became apparent why she didn’t run to Lily when she looked at her legs. One of them was badly broken. 

“Oh god, I think I see bone,” James said, turning around on sight. 

“James, you’ve seen broken bones before. You’ve had them before,” Remus said exasperatedly.

“Yeah, and they’re still disgusting,” James shot back.

“Ok. I can’t really fix this without proper supplies, so there’s not much I can do but this,” Lily said as she performed a pain-relief charm. 

“Oh no, this is great. Thanks, Lily,” Mary sighed out as the pain began to dissipate a bit "That's really nice. So much better."

“Ok, so Mary can’t leave, but what should the rest of us do?” Frank asked. 

“You guys should leave me here and find the others, I’ll be fine,” Mary said.

“No way. You can’t even stand, let alone fight. Ok, Alice, Frank, you guys stay here. Protect Mary, and if we see any students, we’ll send them your way. Keep them safe until we can all leave. James and I will take Remus to find the others. Does anyone know where Dorcas is?” Lily asked.

“She said she was going to Scrivenshaft,” Mary answered.

“Ok, that’s just down the road. We’ll get her then take a left to get to Quality Qudditch, sound good?” Lily asked James and Remus, who both nodded.

“Lily?” Alice called as they were leaving. Lily turned. “Be careful out there.”

“Don’t worry mum. I’ll be back before supper, “ Lily grinned.

Once they were out on the streets again, the chaos resumed. Luckily, they managed to avoid a good bit of it by once again ducking into alleys. James and Remus threw hexes as Lily darted ahead, clearing the path for her. A Death Eater appeared in front of her, grinning maniacally. 

“Stupefy!” Lily shouted hitting him dead in the chest with the spell. She knelt down beside him and pulled off his mask.

“Mulciber?” She gasped, recognizing her fellow student. He had always been demented, but she never thought he could do something like this.

“Lily!” She heard Remus shout. “We found Dorcas, come quick!”

Lily ran towards the sound of the voice, forsaking all protection in her hurry. She ducked into an alley, and ran straight into someone.

“Stupefy!”

“Protego!”

Lily’s spell bounced harmlessly off of Remus’s shield.

“Sorry,” Lily said, lowering her wand. “Didn’t realize it was you.”

“It’s fine,” Remus replied. “Come here, you’re the best at healing and we definitely need a healer.”

“What happened?” Lily gasped as she saw Dorcas and James around the corner. Dorcas was sitting on the ground, with blood on her shirt. James was pressing down on a spot near her left hip.

“I may have run into some minor complications,” Dorcas panted out. “Good to see you Princess.”

“Cas,” Lily said softly as Dorcas whimpered when James pressed down a bit harder "What happened?".

“We found her trying to fight off Death Eaters with a metal rod sticking out of her torso,” James said, still focusing on keeping pressure on the wound.

“Of course you did,” Lily said, shaking slightly but still rolling her eyes affectionately. Dorcas tried to laugh but it came out as more of a wheeze. “Ok, Cas, I’m gonna do a spell to check if the injury damaged any organs or could be infected. Then I’m gonna do a few things to prevent blood loss and get you mobile, alright?”

“Yeah, sure,” Dorcas groaned. “Just do it.”

“Ok, yeah. You’re gonna be alright, Cas. I promise.”

“I’m not five, Lily, you don’t have to act like everything is fine. Although, I’ve had period cramps worse than this, so I guess it’s not too bad,” Dorcas said as Lily smiled weakly. 

“Ok, no organ damage or anything, but it got really close to an artery, so we really have to do something about blood loss. James, could you tear a strip off your shirt or something?” Lily asked.

“You know, Remus could have done it, but naturally its James who we want to have less clothing,” Dorcas mumbled as James did as Lily asked.

“Shut up,” Lily responded as she transfigured the cloth into a bandage. She carefully applied to the wound. 

“Ok, you can’t move too quick, but we do need you to move. Here, Remus and I can help,” Lily said as she pulled Dorcas to her feet. Dorcas groaned, closing her eyes briefly and clenching her teeth. 

“Ok, let’s go. Where are we headed?” She gritted out.

“Quidditch shop, Marly and Sirius are there,” Lily answered. Dorcas nodded and began to hobble forwards with Remus’s help. Lily and James put up shield charms and led the way.

Things were quieting down, and when they got to the main street they could see why. Aurors had arrived and were attempting to catch the Death Eaters, who were Apparating away.

“Look, it’s Dumbledore,” James pointed out. Sure enough, their headmaster was in Hogsmeade. He was helping to put out fires and talking to Aurors.

“Ok, that’s good, but we still have to find Marlene and Sirius,” Remus said. Lily thought of how scared he must be for his boyfriend, and she walked a bit faster. 

“Remus, take Dorcas to the Aurors so she can get help. James and I will get Sirius and Marly.” She pulled James along.

“Ok, they should be just to the left here- oh my god.”

The Quidditch shop was blown to rubble. Even the walls had collapsed. The wreckage was still smoking too.

“Sirius!” James bellowed. “Sirius! Marlene!”

“Marly! Sirius! Where are you!” Lily screamed as James ran towards the rubble. She caught him by the wrist. “What are you doing?!”

“I have to find him. I gotta find- Sirius, where are you? Sirius!” James continued to shout, struggling against Lily’s grip. Tear tracks were evident against the dirt on his face. “Sirius!”

“James! James, we’re under here!” 

James whipped towards the weak shout. 

“Keep talking mate. Where are you?”

“We’re under the rocks, there’s a chunk of wall on my leg, I can’t move. Marly is unconscious, and bleeding. Hurry up, we’re being crushed!” Sirius answered. Lily joined James as they began to lift some of the wreckage with magic. They began to dig desperately with their hands as the heavier chunks were removed.

“Sirius! Sirius!” James cried out as he unburied his friend. He pulled him into a tight hug.

“Good to see you mate. Is everyone alright? Pete, Remus, the girls?”

“Peter. Oh god, where’s Peter?”

“We can find him in a bit, help me get Marly out,” Lily responded, frantically digging. The two boys helped, and they managed to get Marlene out.

“Oh god, oh god,” Lily said, cradling her best friend.

“I’m gonna be sick,” James said, leaning against Sirius, who was very pale.

Marlene’s entire right side was covered in blood. There was a gash on her forehead and bruises all over her body. Her left arm, which had been caught under a heavy rock, was broken enough to see bone. She also had burns all over, not unlike Sirius, who was also bruised and burned.

“Jesus, mate, what happened to her?” James asked, turning his attention to Sirius so he wouldn’t throw up.

“A Death Eater hit her with a cutting curse before he blew the place up. She was also the closest to the explosion,” Sirius answered.

“Ok, we have to get help, but I’m scared to move her. James, go get a professor, or an Auror, someone, anyone!” Lily cried out, still holding Marlene’s head in her lap, trying to staunch the bleeding. She now had tear tracks to match James’s.

“On it,” James said, running off. Sirius dropped to his knees next to Lily, stoking Marlene’s hair out of her face.

“She’ll be ok, Lils. It’s Marly, you know? She’ll be just fine.”

“Yeah, of course. Of course. She’ll be fine. Remember that time she broke her leg during a Quidditch game and kept flying?”

“Ha, yeah. And when she finally went to the hospital wing, she kept complaining that she was fine and it barely hurt?”

“Yeah,” Lily laughed. Or cried. She could no longer tell the difference.

“Ok, I got Minnie,” James said as he returned. Sure enough, Professor McGonagall was right behind him.

“Oh, lord. Ok, its not a good idea to move her, you did the right thing. I’ll do what I can, but she’s definitely lost a lot of blood,” McGonagall said as she began to heal Marlene. “That should be enough to move her safely.”

“Yeah, but she’s gonna be alright, right Professor?” Lily asked as McGonagall levitated Marlene steadily and began to walk towards the Aurors.

“I certainly hope so, Miss Evans,” McGonagall replied. A team of Healers surrounded her, and soon Lily could no longer see her friend or her professor.

“Peter!” She heard James shout, and turned around to see him envelope the smaller boy.

“Hey James,” Peter responded, returning the hug.

“Peter, where were you?” Sirius asked.

“Well, I saw James’s patronus headed up to Hogwarts, so I followed it. I sent a patronus off to the Aurors, and then I rounded up as many professors as I could and doubled back. I found Alice, Mary, and Frank holed up protecting other students, so I stuck with them to make sure the younger kids were ok,” Peter responded.

“He was really good with them, made sure nobody went hysterical or anything. It was actually really helpful,” Alice said.

“Alice,” Lily sighed out, hugging her friend. Alice gripped her tightly.

“I saw that you found Cas. She’s alright, the Healers managed to fix her up really quick. Where’s Marly?” Alice asked. Lily just held her even tighter. The days events began to catch up to her, and she started to cry.

“Oh, no, Lily. Oh god, what happened? Where’s Marly?” Alice asked.

“She was really hurt Alice. It was so bad, it was so bad, there was so much blood, and she was burned all over-“ Lily sobbed.

“Fuck,” Alice swore, bringing Lily closer to her. “Is she gonna be ok?”

“Is who gonna be ok?” Someone asked. Lily looked up to see none other than Dorcas, freshly healed.

“Marly got really badly hurt,” Sirius answered. The blood drained from Dorcas’s face.

“How bad?” She asked quietly. She looked almost calm, but Lily had known her long enough to tell she was scared to the point of shutting down.

“It was awful,” James replied just as quietly. Dorcas nodded once, and clenched her jaw. Her hands curled into fists and uncurled. 

“What happened?” Dorcas asked in the same carefully controlled voice.

“We were in the Quidditch shop. The Death Eaters Apparated in to the village through there. One of them hit Marly with a cutting curse, and then blew the whole place,” Sirus responded solemnly. Dorcas just nodded again and sat next to Alice. Alice put an arm around her shoulder, but she didn’t seem to notice, only staring at the ground.

“Miss Eavns?” Lily perked up as McGonagall appeared.

“Is Marlene ok?” She asked.

“Miss McKinnon is being moved to St. Mungo’s as we speak. I thought you should know,” McGonagall replied.

“Yeah but will she be ok?” Dorcas asked, not even looking up.

McGonagall sighed. “I don’t know,” she answered. “She lost a lot of blood, had many internal injuries, a major concussion, and was burned quite a bit.”

“But there’s no way that she’d…. you know…” Lily trailed off, not wanting to even finish the thought.

“Honestly, Miss Evans, we’re not sure. Just in case, I will allow you to see her tonight. If you want to say anything to her. Perhaps even a goodbye.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol I'm not sorry. Hope everyone enjoyed that chapter. I really enjoyed writing it. Except now I have to update my tags. Damn, I should have known inflicting emotional pain would be nothing but work. Oh well, it was worth it. Have a good day/night, everyone.


	8. The Hospital

“No.” Dorcas shook her head. “No, Marls is gonna be fine, she’s gonna be fine, she has to be. She has to be.”

“Dorcas,” James said softly. She just continued to shake her head.

“Cas, come here,” Alice tried. Dorcas looked up and Lily sucked in a breath. She looked…..Lily couldn’t even begin to describe it. The pain on her face was so raw, so heartbreakingly intense, that Lily began to cry. 

“No, don’t….. don’t cry Lils,” Dorcas said, hobbling over and pulling Lily into her arms.

“I can’t help it,” Lily sobbed. “You’re hurting so much.”

“No,” Dorcas replied heavily. “Marlene is.” There was a flicker of something other than sadness in her eyes for a second, but it was gone before Lily could pinpoint it.

“When can we go see her, Professor?” Peter asked quietly.

“Now if you wish. You can floo directly to my office when you’re done,” McGonagall replied.

“Ok. I’m going to see her. Anyone else coming?” Sirius asked, looking at the devastated group.

“I will,” James said, getting to his feet. 

“Same here,” Peter said. Mary also nodded.

“I’ll come along,” Frank said. He looked to Alice.

“Give us a few minutes,” Alice said, answering his silent question. 

“I’ll wait with them,” Remus said. “Professor, can you Apparate us there?”

“Of course, Mr Lupin. I’ll be back for the rest of you in a few minutes.” She grabbed the others and Apparated away.

Remus moved to crouch in front of Alice, Lily, and Dorcas. “You know Marly’s gonna be ok, right? I mean, come on, it’s Marlene. She’s the toughest out of all of us.”

“Yeah,” Alice said. “She’s gonna be back on her feet in no time.”

“Right. Yeah, of course. Of course,” Lily said. Dorcas remained silent. 

“Right. Do you guys want to come and see her?” Remus asked as McGonagall appeared beside them.

“Yeah,” Alice answered. 

“Yeah, she’ll be bored without us,” Lily tried to quip. Dorcas cracked a small smile.

“Ok, let’s do this,” she said. The group grabbed a hold of McGonagall’s arm and disappeared.

——————————————————————————————

Lily looked around the hospital in apprehension. As far as she could tell, they were in some sort of private waiting area.

“This is an emergency patient waiting room. More people might show up, considering the breadth of the attack, so be prepared for some high tension levels. Doctors will come to you here when you can see Marlene,” McGonagall said. “I have to get back to Hogsmeade. I need you all- yes all includes you boys- to behave in a manner befitting the situation.” With that, she turned and disapparated away.

“Ok,” Frank muttered. “I guess just make yourselves comfortable, we can’t be sure how long it’ll be.” He sat near the corner, Alice beside him. She leaned her head against his shoulder and he wrapped an arm around her as she shook slightly.

“Right, yeah. I’m gonna…. Try to find some tea or something. Yeah.” Sirius ambled off.

“What’s up with him?” Mary asked.

“He’s not a fan of hospitals. I’m gonna go after him, make sure he’s ok,” Remus replied. He got up from his seat and walked in the same direction as Sirius.

Lily sat next to Dorcas, who was sitting silently, staring at the floor and bouncing her leg. James sat on Dorcas’s other side. He shared an upset look with Lily, neither knowing how to make their friend feel better.

“Remember our prank war?” Dorcas asked suddenly. “How you two would go back and forth trying to out-prank each other, but it just ended with Remus winning?” 

“Don’t remind me, I’m still bitter,” James laughed. Lily smiled, recalling James walking into the Great Hall covered in slime thanks to one of her pranks.

“Yeah,” Dorcas smirked. “Marlene started that.”

“Wait, what?” Lily asked.

“The first prank? You ending up with purple hair for a day? That was Marlene, but you were so quick to blame James that she just let you go after him. Then she started taking bets on who would win. She made almost 80 galleons.” Dorcas stopped bouncing her leg as she recounted the story.

“A war profiteer,” Lily nodded. “I should’ve known.”

“Damn,” James said. “Not gonna lie, that’s pretty clever.”

“Yeah,” Dorcas snorted. “She thought so too.” She fell silent, the smile disappearing from her face. Lily noticed and put an arm around her.

“She’ll be fine, Cas. She will be.”

“But what if she’s not? What then, Lily? How are we supposed to……. What are we gonna do if….”

“We won’t have to find out, Dorcas. Do you remember what I said during the summer?” James asked softly, kneeling in front of Dorcas.

“A lot of shit,” Dorcas answered.

James snorted. “Ok, but the time after………. After the thing?”

“You told me that beginnings matter more than ends.”

“Yeah. Do you know what I meant?”

“No, cuz it’s cryptic bullshit.”

“It means that no matter how things seem to end, they’re never really over. We’re not losing Marlene. She’s not going to die. But if she did……… If she did, Dorcas, we wouldn’t really lose her. The people we love never truly leave us. We can always find them again in here.” James laid a hand on his heart.

“That’s almost poetic, Potter. You ever considered writing?” Dorcas laughed with shining eyes. Lily couldn’t tell if it was due to tears or amusement.

“Fuck off, Meadowes. Here I was being all profound and you mock me? See if I ever help you again,” James pretended to scoff.

“That was actually pretty sound advice,” Alice called from across the room. “No matter what happens, we all loved her and she lives on through that.”

“Yeah, not bad mate,” Peter said.

“See?” James gestured. “They appreciate me.”

“Uh huh,” Lily teased.

“Yeah yeah, Evans, we already know you don’t like me, no need to drive it home so hard,” James replied. Lily just grinned.

“Well, this has to be the cheeriest waiting room I’ve ever seen,” Sirius remarked as he and Remus walked in. “All that’s left is a dance party.”

“Fuck off, mate,” James said. “Did you bring back any tea?”

“Nope,” Sirius grinned. “Go get your own you lazy pig.”

“Excuse me, I’m looking for the family of Marlene McKinnon?” A nurse poked her head into the waiting room.

“That’s us,” Dorcas said as she stood.

“Oh sorry, I should have been more specific. I’m looking for her parents?” The nurse said.

“I don’t think they’re here,” Alice said. “Is Marly ok? Is she awake yet?”

“I’m really not sure I should discuss this with someone outside the family….”

“Listen, we’re as close to family as it gets. We didn’t come here just to be told we don’t matter enough to know if she’s ok,” Dorcas seethed. “So here’s how it’s gonna go. You’re gonna take us to Marlene. On the way, you’re gonna tell us exactly what happened and what to expect for recovery. And if she’s awake when we get there, I don’t care what your visiting hours are, we’re staying with her until she kicks us out, got it?”

The nurse, the poor, brave nurse, replied, “Listen, I don’t think you understand exactly how things work here-“

“I understand that my friend is hurt. And a lot more people are gonna get hurt if you try to keep me from her.” Dorcas delivered the threat casually, but her tone promised a war unrivaled by any in history if her instructions weren’t obeyed.

“Alright, fine. Follow me,” the nurse capitulated to Dorcas’s controlled rage and led them through a long white hallway.

Sirius shivered. “I really hate hospitals.”

“Why is that?” Lily asked curiously.

“Everything is brightly lit and painted white and there’s not a single sign of life. There aren’t really any paintings on the wall and they don’t……. They’re places of death masquerading as places of healing.”

“That’s not creepy at all,” Lily said, looking around. He was right. There were no paintings, only a seemingly endless brightly lit corridor, identical on both sides. Lily could no longer see where they had come from.

“You see my point then, Red,” Sirius replied.

The nurse stopped them outside room 307. “Your friend suffered a major concussion, 5 broken ribs, a punctured lung, a lot of blood loss, and badly broken leg. The leg and ribs are mostly healed, but the lung and concussion will take little longer. She is awake, although the pain will mean she probably won’t speak much.”

“Ok. That’s……..yeah, alright. Ok.” Dorcas stuttered. “But she is expected to make a full recovery, right?”

“Of course,” the nurse responded. “May I go now? Contrary to your beliefs, there are other patients in this hospital who are grateful for the help I provide them.”

“Yeah yeah, just leave,” Mary grumbled. Lily laughed at her normally empathetic friend being totally unmoved. The nurse sniffed once disdainfully and was gone.

“Good riddance,” said Peter.

“Ok everyone, you heard the annoying nurse. Marly is awake, but she’s definitely hurting, so we need to keep it at like a five, ok?” Remus said, eyeing the group members, likely assessing which would cause the most trouble.

“Yes Professor,” James mocked, and Remus grimaced.

“Alright. Let’s go, Gryffindors.”

——————————————————————————————

Marlene was lying on a bed in the middle of the room. It wasn’t too small, with a few chairs and a beat-up looking couch. The Marauders all squeezed on to the couch. Frank, Alice, and Mary claimed the chairs, and Lily and Dorcas stood near the bed.

“Hey, Marls. How you feeling?” Dorcas asked gently.

“Like a building fell on me,” Marlene smiled. “I survived building falling on me, how badass is that?”

Dorcas laughed. “Pretty badass Marls. Pretty badass.”

“Why thank you. Is everyone ok? No one else got hurt too bad, right?”

“I broke a leg,” Mary raised her hand. Marlene grinned.

“Excellent, Mare, you get a sticker. Anyone else?”

“Dorcas got stabbed,” Frank offered. Dorcas shot him a withering glare. Marlene’s grin dropped.

“You what?” She asked quietly.

“It’s fine Marls. It wasn’t a big deal.”

“Not a big deal? You got stabbed and it wasn’t a big deal?”

“I was lightly stabbed. I didn’t want to worry you.”

“Lightly stabbed is not a fucking thing, dumbass. You could have died-“

“We thought you might.” Dorcas’s statement silenced Marlene. She looked like she had had the breath knocked out of her. The others, who had been watching the bickering, went still.

“What?” Marlene asked, voice barely above a whisper.

“We thought there was a chance that you’d……. That this was it,” Dorcas said. “Jesus, Marls, I was so scared. I thought……. I thought…”

“Hey, no, come here,” Marlene said, patting the space on the bed next to her. Dorcas sat down gingerly, trying not to jostle the injured girl. Marlene had no such qualms, as she immediately sat up and wrapped her arms around Dorcas tightly.

“I’m here,” she whispered to Dorcas, who was shaking slightly. “I’m here, I’m not going anywhere. Can’t get rid of me that easily, Meadowes.”

“I… we thought…. I thought…. Jesus Christ, Marly, I can’t lose you. I can’t-“ Dorcas mumbled, cutting herself off by burying her face in the crook of Marlene’s neck. Marlene cradled the back of her head with one hand and rubbed circles on Dorcas’s back with the other.

“You won’t lose me Cas. Apparently not even if a building falls on me. I mean, I’ll have a wicked fucking scar, but besides that, I’m fine. You won’t lose me.” Marlene pulled Dorcas’s head up and rested her forehead against the brunette’s.

“Well, that was nauseating,” James remarked, breaking the silence. The others laughed to dissipate the tension, and Marlene pulled back with a blush on her face. Dorcas was also blushing pretty heavily.

“Says you, Potter. At least we didn’t squeal like five year old girls when Sirius and Remus finally got together,” Dorcas said.

“Hey, five year old girls are very formidable. I’m scared of them,” James answered.

“Sure Potter. Hey Marly, do you want a drink or something? I could get you water, or some tea,” Lily offered. Marlene smiled.

“Tea actually sounds good, my throat kinda hurts.”

“Ok. Come on Potter,” Lily said. 

“Why am I coming?” James asked, though he got off the couch and moved towards the door.

“Because I’m almost certain that I’m going to get lost, and I need a well-trained tour guide to help.”

“Fair enough,” James said as he followed. Lily out and closed the door behind them. Everyone remained speechless for a minute.

“They’re totally boning, right?” Sirius asked, a gleam in his eye.

“If they aren’t, they will be soon. I say by the end of sixth year,” Alice said.

“Nah, you’re wrong. Seventh year, definitely.” Dorcas said. Marlene and Remus both nodded in agreement.

“I’ll take that action,” Alice said. “Winner gets 30 galleons.”

“You’re on,” Dorcas said. “Anyone else want in?”

“I’m with Alice. No way James waits til seventh year to ask her out again,” Sirius said. Frank nodded. 

“Yeah, he’s pretty smitten.”

“I say they get together by Valentine’s Day,” Peter tossed in. Mary nodded.

“Ok, Frank, Sirius and I say by the end of sixth year. Peter and Mary say by Valentine’s Day, and Remus, Dorcas, and Marlene say seventh year. 30 galleons goes to the winners to be split evenly among them. May the best people win!”

——————————————————————————————

“They’re totally boning, right?” James asked, grinning.

“James!” Lily swatted his arm. “Don’t say that!”

“But they are! That whole conversation, the hug, the forehead touch? They are so into each other,” James said.

“Ok, but Dorcas is straight. That doesn’t make sense,” Lily answered. “Maybe they’re just closer than we realized.”

“The gal pal defense? Oh please Evans. They are into each other. Only question is, how do we get them IN to each other?” James continued to grin. Lily swatted him on the arm again.

“That’s disgusting Potter.”

“Uh huh. Actually though, we totally have to set them up,” James remarked as they entered the tea room.

“James, again, Dorcas. Is. Straight. She’s not into Marlene,” Lily said, although she was sad for her friend. She deserved her feelings being requited.

“Ok, I can’t take it anymore. Evans, can you keep a secret?” James asked, no longer smiling. His face was now solemn instead.

“Does the school know about Remus?” Lily answered, raising an eyebrow.

“Fair point.” James nodded. “Ok, Dorcas has sworn me to secrecy on this, so you can’t tell another soul, got it? Dorcas is a good friend and I won’t go against her wishes.”

“Ok, I solemnly swear I won’t say anything to anyone,” Lily replied, hand over her heart. “Now what’s up with Cas?”

“She’s very bi and very into Marlene.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo, Dorcas and Marlene are finally getting somewhere. Except that they're not lol. The useless lesbians are def gonna need a bit more than that to get together. Side note, sound off in the comments if there's anything in particular you want me to write in to the story. I'm open to suggestions as long as they're canon compliant. Other than that, have a great day/night and I hope you liked it!


	9. Aftermath

“What?” Lily asked, mind reeling. Dorcas wasn’t straight. And she was into Marlene? 

‘How the hell did you miss that?’ A snide voice in her mind asked.

‘Shut up,’ Lily thought back. ‘I could have missed all the tension between Remus and Sirius like Mary did.’

“Evans? You alright there?” James waved a hand in front of her face. 

“Huh? Oh, yeah.” Lily blinked back in to the present. “How do you know?”

“Cas told me. Over the summer, we started hanging out a lot because the boys were busy and she didn’t live near any of you. She only started figuring things out towards the end of last year.”

“Why didn’t she tell any of us?” Lily asked, confused and a little hurt by her friend not trusting her.

“I guess it was easier to tell someone she wasn’t as close to,” James answered. “And she only told me after she had a panic attack.”

“What?!” Lily’s head spun yet again. “Dorcas had a panic attack?”

“It wasn’t a big one, but yeah. Her parents said some dumb shit about ‘the gays’ when they were watching tv and she got freaked. She was scared they’d kick her out like Sirius’s parents did.”

“Oh god, I can’t believe she tried to do this alone. That dumbass.”

James laughed. “She said she was going to come out to you guys too, so be prepared I guess.”

“Yeah. Ok, so she’s bi, but are you sure she’s into Marly? I mean I could totally see that but how are you so sure?” Lily asked. Her friends were affectionate with each other, sure, and Marly was definitely into Dorcas, but were her feelings really requited?

“Cas told me that too. She’s been freaking out since like last year. ‘Marls has such gorgeous eyes, and such beautiful hair, and did you know her parents told her that guys won’t want her if she has too many muscles? Which is ridiculous because have you seen her biceps? Or her legs? And oh my god when she falls asleep right after Quidditch practice and her hair gets curly and she’s only wearing a tank top and cut-off shorts? And the sun is setting and her hair looks like gold? Who wouldn’t want her? Don’t you want her? I mean, no, she’s gay and I want her, so you can’t have her. Marlene is just incredible. Marly Marly Marly Marly Marly.’” James finished his rant, a little breathless. Lily stared at him in astonishment.

“Did you make all that up on the spot or is that something she actually said?”

“No, that was all lifted verbatim from a freakout three days ago. Marly apparently came back from Quidditch practice in a black tank top and cut-off shorts and Dorcas nearly went catatonic,” James replied.

“Jesus. She’s almost as useless as Marlene is,” Lily said.

“Almost? Merlin, what is Marlene like? She can’t be much worse.”

“She is so much worse. I’ll spare you the details, but she went on a two hour long speech complete with evidence and other testimonies about how Dorcas was the most beautiful person in Hogwarts. Even Sirius was amazed, and do you remember what he was like when he was pining after Remus?”

“Oh god, he basically composed more sonnets than Shakespeare,” James said, slightly horrified. “Marlene is worse than that?”

“By a lot,” Lily confirmed.

“Oh god. Ok, we have to get them together or we’ll be subjected to their useless pining forever,” James said.

“Ok, but how do we even do that? It’s gonna take some work,” Lily responded. 

“Yeah, and I doubt we could do it alone. Maybe we should get the whole group in on it,” James mused as they finally found the tearoom and entered. “Once Cas comes out, that is.”

“Yeah. I can’t believe we thought you and Dorcas were dating when it turns out she wanted Marlene all along,” Lily said, busying herself with making tea.

“Yeah, well, we were suddenly a lot closer and you guys didn’t know why. Can’t blame you for suspecting something,” James replied.

“Yeah, but not every guy and girl who are friends are together.”

“Good point. Remember when people thought Marlene and Sirius were dating?”

“Oh my god, yes!” Lily laughed. “That was so ridiculous. Marly got threats from jealous girls for like three weeks.”

“Sirius got those too.” James snickered. Lily poured the tea into a cup and they set off to the room.

“How many people in our group are actually straight?” Lily wondered. “Remus and Sirius are dating, Sirius is gay and Remus is bi. Dorcas is bi, Marlene is gay, Frank is bi…”

“Wait, Frank is bi?” James asked in surprise. “I didn’t know that.”

“Yeah, I caught him with the Hufflepuff prefect, Lance, one time. I think he’s mostly into girls though.”

“Huh. Ok. So that’s all the guys except me and Peter, and Marlene and Dorcas out of the girls-“

“Alice once kissed a girl, but she was drunk and I’m fairly certain it didn’t mean anything,” Lily interjected.

“Ok, so Alice gets wild when she’s drunk, but that’s it?” 

“Oh, add me to the list,” Lily said suddenly.

“Wait, what?” James said, coming to a complete stop.

“Yeah, I like girls,” Lily answered, shrugging. “Been on a few dates, but nothing serious.”

“How did I not know this, Evans?” James asked, pretending to be hurt.

“I never really labeled myself, and I don’t really feel the need to come out or anything, so it’s not like a lot of people know.”

“Fair enough. No label?”

“Nah, don’t really care about it. I mean, it’s not bad to want a label, but it’s not my style either. I like who I like, who cares what the gender is?” Lily replied.

“Good point. You do you, Evans. Or whoever you want to do. Ok, so for the list, it’s all the guys except me and Peter-“

“Peter and I.”

“No one likes a nerd, Evans. It’s all the guys except Peter and I, and all the girls except Mary and Alice?” James asked.

“I think so.”

“Wow. You guys outnumber us, you know that? Four straight people and five others.”

“Hey, that’s neat. We should form a club or something,” Lily joked.

“The Gay Gryffindor Group,” James said. Lily snorted.

“Hell yeah, we could make a poster.”

The two finally found Marlene’s room again.

“After you, Evans,” James gestured to the door and bowed. Lily giggled.

“Thank you dear sir,” She responded, curtsying gracefully. 

She opened the door and walked in, only to be hit in the face with a pillow. As the pillow fell to the floor, Lily observed the chaos that had befallen the room in her absence. Peter was on the ground being pummeled by Mary with a decorative pillow. Alice had turned Frank into a human shield and was hurling pillows at Dorcas, who had taken cover on the other side of Marlene’s bed. Marlene herself was fending off attacks from Sirius, who was hiding behind the overturned couch. Remus was sitting in a chair. No one dared to hit him. He, like Lily, was helpless and could only watch as the pillow war became more brutal.

“Hey guys, McGonagall is here to get us and-“ James bounded into the room, only to have his jaw drop as the combatants froze in place. Stray feathers from the pillows littered the ground as they floated down from the air. Lily watched helplessly as a feather drifted slowly down, gracefully twisting and turning, only to land on the head of Professor McGonagall.

“What. did. you. do?” Professor McGonagall asked with tightly closed eyes and a clenched jaw.

“Professor! Hi there, great to see you in this fine establishment. As to what we did, that’s actually quite a funny story-“

“Sirius, darling?” Remus said.

“Yes, dear Remus, love of my life?”

“Shut up.”

“That’s fair.”

——————————————————————————————

“ABSOLUTELY IRRESPONSIBLE, COMPLETELY OUT OF LINE, DESTRUCTIVE-“

“Ooh, she is tearing them a new one,” James said. He and Lily were waiting outside McGonagall’s office as she reprimanded the others for their ‘Hospital Hoedown Throw-down To End All Showdowns’ as Sirius called it.

“Yeah, I don’t know what they were thinking,” Lily replied, pacing around the room.

“They probably just wanted to make sure Marlene had some fun,” James reasoned.

“Still, that could’ve been done in a less destructive way,” Lily replied.

“Since when has Marlene been entertained by anything that wasn’t destructive?” James asked. Lily was about to agree when the office door opened.

“As I was going to tell you, Professor Dumbledore wants to see you all. The Aurors are trying to gather eyewitness accounts, so considering each of you was fighting or helping others when found, your testimonies may be imperative,” McGonagall said, shooting a glare at Sirius, who was still practically grinning after her scolding. “I trust you boys remember where his office is and can show the others how to get there? The password is ‘plumpynut’.”

“Thanks Professor,” Remus said, pulling Sirius out of the room before he could make a joke about ‘plumpynut’.

“Ok, follow me everyone,” James said, walking out of the room. Lily fell in next to Dorcas as they began to walk.

“So, why were you and James gone so long?” Dorcas asked teasingly. “Were you two busy somewhere? Perhaps a supply closet? Or did you happen upon an empty room?”

“Don’t even start with me now that I have ammo against you,” Lily answered jokingly, slightly testing how Dorcas would react. She laughed, but Lily could see a hint of panic in her eyes.

“What do you know?” Dorcas asked simply, apparently not seeing the need to dance around the subject.

“It’s ok, I won’t tell anyone anything unless you give permission. But Marlene? You should go for it,” Lily whispered. Dorcas laughed quietly. 

“Yeah, no way. She doesn’t like me like that, and even if she did, I’m not sure I’m ready to be out yet,” Dorcas replied.

“Alright, fair enough. Can’t tell you when to come out. But when you’re ready, just go for it,” Lily advised.

“I’ll keep that in mind,” Dorcas said as the group came to a stop.

“Right then,” James said to….. a griffin statue? 

‘He’s finally lost his shit,’ Lily thought.

“Plumpynut,” James said to the statue. To Lilys surprise, the statue seemed to nod, and it jumped aside to reveal a large staircase.

“After you,” James said, stepping to the side and gesturing for the group to head up. Peter, who had been to Dumbledore’s office with the Marauders before, was unaffected by the strange entry method and began to climb. After a minute or two, they came upon a large door.

“Everyone ready?” James asked.

“You know what, no, I forgot to feed my cat,” Dorcas deadpanned. “Yes, we’re ready, Potter, open the damn door.”

“Shut up, Dorcastleshire,” James replied, and he pushed the door open.

The group stepped in to a large circular office. There were seemingly thousands of strange objects on shelves and tables around the room, whirring and spinning. Lily couldn’t track all the movement in the room. Even the walls seemed to be moving.

And then Lily realized that what she thought were walls weren’t walls at all. They were paintings, covering almost the entire office. Some of the inhabitants were sleeping, others were talking, and others were doing what Lily was: puzzling out the current situation. James, relatively unphased by everything happening around him, led the group towards the back of the room. Sirius and Remus were already there, talking in hushed voices with the Headmaster himself, who was reclining in a plush purple armchair.

“Ah, mister Potter, good to see you doing well,” Dumbledore said in greeting. James smirked.

“Bit weird to be in here for a reason that isn’t a prank, but I guess it can’t be weirder than anything else happening.”

“Indeed. I was speaking to Mr. Black and Mr. Lupin about their involvement in the events in Hogsmeade. I understand that you were also involved?” Dumbledore said, standing and beginning to pace.

“Er, yes sir,” Lily replied, unsure of what to do. She glanced nervously around at her friends, who were of no help as they were also confused. Dorcas just shrugged and mouthed, ‘fuck all if I know.’

“Alright. I understand the basics from Mr. Lupin and Mr. Black, but I need to know. Is there anything you saw that could help us to understand why the Death Eaters targeted Hogsmeade?”

“I didn’t see anything sir,” Alice said.

“Neither did I,” Dorcas answered. Dumbledore nodded and then turned his gaze to Lily. 

“I didn’t see anything either sir- wait.” A face flashed in Lily’s mind.

“Mulciber,” she breathed out. Everyone turned to her, but she focused on Dumbledore. His usually calm eyes seemed to turn into steel. “I was running to get to Dorcas and James and Remus, and I ran into a Death Eater. He was slow, so I knocked him out. I took his mask off, and it was Mulciber.”

“You’re sure of what you saw?” Dumbledore asked, though not unkindly.

“Positive sir,” Lily replied. “It was Mulciber wearing the mask. I don’t know how he got it, maybe he just nicked it off someone, but he was wearing it.”

“Thank you Miss Evans, you may have just helped tremendously. You may all return to your common room,” Dumbledore said. 

“Of course sir,” Remus said, already beginning to usher the others out the door. Lily turned to follow.

“Not you, Miss Evans. If you won’t mind terribly, I’d like to speak with you for a bit,” Dumbledore said, turning to gaze out the window. 

“Er, of course not sir,” Lily stuttered, shooting a glance at Alice that clearly conveyed panic. Alice just shrugged and continued out the door.

Once everyone was gone, Lily turned back to look at Dumbledore. Unsure of what to do, she joined Dumbledore at the window.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Dumbledore asked. Lily had to agree. The sun was going down, bathing the lake in golden light, setting the sky ablaze.

“Yes sir, it’s wonderful.”

“I always loved sunsets here. They always happen almost the same way every time. There’s something beautiful about consistency, isn’t there?”

“Er, I guess so sir?” Lily had no idea what the Headmaster was talking about.

“Miss Evans, I was told that you had a large part in keeping students safe. Setting up a makeshift shelter, throwing yourself into battle to keep others safe.”

“I did what anyone would have done sir. And the shelter, that was all Alice, Frank, and Peter. I just told them to keep the kids safe, they were the ones who managed to pull it off,” Lily replied.

“Hmm. All the same, what you did was brave. I’m awarding Gryffindor 100 points for you and your friends’ actions in Hogsmeade,” Dumbledore said, still looking out the window. “That’s all I have to say, you may join your friends now. I’m sure you’d like to get some rest.”

“Thank you sir,” Lily said, walking towards the door. She turned suddenly, a thought striking her. “Sir?”

“Yes, Miss Evans?”

“You said you were trying to figure out why the Death Eaters attacked Hogsmeade.”

“If you have a question, Miss Evans, you needn’t be afraid to ask it,” Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling in amusement.

“Do you know why they targeted Hogsmeade sir?” Lily asked, almost afraid of the answer more than asking the question.

“I don’t know yet. It’s on the tip of my tongue, but I simply don’t know the words.” Dumbledore sat heavily in his chair. He suddenly looked much older.

“Ok. Because I was thinking…. It’s just, if I was a Death Eater, I would want to make everyone frightened early on. Make sure that when students came of age, they were still too afraid to fight,” Lily said. 

He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named had only grown so powerful through fear. Fear and manipulation and a Narcissus complex so powerful he thought anyone remotely like him was superior. Lily despised that more than anything. That there were people out there who assumed they were superior simply because of their ancestry made Lily feel almost sick. And that was where He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named got his power. That sick feeling only goes away if you do something about it, and if everyone was too scared to do anything about it, it would eat away at them before they could get rid of it.

“That’s an interesting theory, Miss Evans,” Dumbledore said. Lily only realized she had said all of that out loud when he responded to it. “If fear grows early, like a weed, it snuffs out the desire to fight. That could be why they targeted the town when student were there.”

“Sorry sir, I didn’t mean to rant. It’s just……… Fear is his most powerful weapon. And yet no one teaches us how to fight that,” Lily said, thinking of her useless Defense teacher. He had gotten to the point where they just read from the textbook. The only time she really learned Defense was when she studied with Remus and her other friends.

“You’re right. Perhaps a class on safety and procedure for what to do if you’re in an attack? Hmm, I’ll have to think about that,” Dumbledore mused quietly. He looked up at Lily. “Thank you for your input and information, Miss Evans. You my return to your common room now.”

“Thank you sir,” Lily said, striding through the office, taking one more look at the sunset before leaving.

She walked through the halls towards Gryffindor Tower. Whenever she passed other students, they would jump out of her way ad whisper about her.

“Did you see her?”

“She looks tired.”

“I heard she took out twenty Death Eaters.”

“I heard she lifted a building.”

Lily was far too tired to deal with the whispered rumors, so she just trudged up the staircase towards the common room.

“Password?” The Fat Lady asked.

“Fairy circle,” Lily muttered. She walked in to see the Marauders and the others setting up a bunch of mattresses, pillows, and blankets on the ground.

“What’s this?” She asked.

“Well, we didn’t feel right sleeping in the dorms without Marly, so we all decided to have a giant sleepover instead,” Alice answered from a pile of blankets. “You good with that?”

“Sounds perfect,” Lily smiled. She walked over to an empty mattress and flopped down on it.

“Ooh, bad luck Evans. You’re stuck next to me,” James said from beside her.

“I’ll live,” Lily answered, still smiling. 

“What did Dumbledore want to talk to you about?” Peter asked.

“I don’t even really know,” Lily replied. “But we got a hundred points for helping out.”

“Awesome, that might make up for a prank we’re planning,” Sirius said.

“I swear to god, Black, we just got those points. If you lose them all on a dumb prank-“

“Was it really Mulciber?” Mary asked quietly, but everyone heard her. A silence fell across the room.

“Yes,” Lily answered simply, too tired to go into detail.

“How? I mean, he’s fucked up, but he’s a kid, same as us. How did the Death Eaters get to him?” Frank asked worriedly.

“I mean, he’s a pureblood and he believes in all that purity rubbish, so I can’t imagine it was hard for them,” Sirius answered scornfully.

“Yeah, but do you guys know what this means?” James asked lowly. Yet again, everyone fell silent.

“It means,” Dorcas answered heavily, “that the Death Eaters are recruiting inside Hogwarts. We’re not safe here anymore.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry it's been so long. I meant to update awhile ago but life got rough for a bit. If anyone's still interested, let me know in the comments. I'm gonna keep posting no matter what, but it's nice to know someone out there cares about this. Thanks so much for reading and I hope you enjoyed.


	10. A Brave New Day

“C’mon, I’ve been gone three days. Give me the gossip.” Marlene pouted in the dorm room. She had been cleared to return to school as long as she took it easy, seeing as most of her injuries had healed.

“You know we’re not actually that interesting, right?” Mary piped up from the desk.

“Like I said, I was gone three days. In those three days, Remus shaved Sirius’s head for calling him Granny, Peter ate almost 4 kilograms of cheese and threw up in McGonagall’s classroom, and they used a charm to glue every Slytherin to their table at lunch,” Marlene listed off, not moving from where she was sprawled across Lily’s bed.

“Sounds like you’re all caught up then,” Lily answered from the table where Alice was braiding her hair. It was a Girl’s Night, which meant all the typical things, plus a bit of mischief.

“I’m back with the snacks,” Dorcas announced as a few platters of candy floated in behind her. She settled on to her own bed as a plate floated to each girl.

“Yes, you remembered my Pumpkin Pasties this time,” Alice crowed triumphantly. 

“Those things are nasty, Alice,” Mary piped up.

“Well at least I don’t like the pepper Bertie Bott’s beans,” Alice replied, finishing Lily’s hair. “Alright, time for the Satanic Circle.”

“We need a new name for that,” Dorcas said as the girls did not actually form a satanic circle, merely sat in a circle filled with cushions and blankets.

“Why, do you have something against Satan? Cuz I have a twelve-step plan to seduce him, and I’m gonna need constructive criticism now,” Marlene replied.

“Marlene you’re gay.”

“I don’t have to be sexually attracted to someone to seduce them, steal their throne, and lead their forces of doom into an apocalyptic battle.”

“This. This is why the last time we had a Girl’s Night you ended up at the bottom of the lake,” Lily sighed.

“Pretty sure that was due to the firewhisky, actually,” Mary mused.

“Thanks for that incredible observation, Mary.”

“I will cut you bitch.”

“Do it, end my suffering you coward,” Lily challenged.

“Ok, while murder is a fun pastime, one of the three rules of Girl’s Night is no murdering people. And it’s the only one we haven’t broken yet and please just let me have this one thing,” Alice said as Mary launched a pillow at Lily’s face.

“Guys, guys, c’mon, Alice is right,” Dorcas said.

“Thank you, Dorcas!” Alice exclaimed.

“If we kill someone, it can’t be on a Girl’s Night. You would need a better alibi than that.”

“Dorcas, honey?” Alice said through gritted teeth.

“Yes, Mum?”

“Shut the fuck up and don’t give them ideas.”

“Fuck off, Mum.”

“I literally just wanted chocolate. That was all I asked for, that was all I needed. I was fine with not being able to play Quidditch for a bit. It won’t hurt my career, Gryffindor won’t play for another two weeks. I was fine with having to catch up in classes, even though they’re notoriously difficult N.E.W.T. courses. I was fine with all of that, because you said you’d get me chocolate. I asked you for one simple thing, and you would rather start a war than give it to me. You think you can see the world from your high horse, you think you’re unconquerable, bloody and undefeated, but someday you will fall. Someday you will look out at the world on your own two feet, starving and alone, and you will watch as everything you knew burns. You will watch your fondest memories be devastated, your homes falling to that cold unforgiving ground, that which defines you as a human slip from your weak grasp into oblivion. And when that happens? When everything you thought would be your empire has fallen? I’ll be there. And I’ll be eating some fucking chocolate.”

Everyone stared at Marlene after her speech, each with varying expressions of terror.

“I……I don’t know how to respond to that. I can’t…. I just……what?” Mary could barely string a sentence together.

“I want some fucking chocolate,” Marlene grumbled. She was immediately hit in the face with a Chocolate Frog.

“That enough chocolate for you, oh great conqueror?” Dorcas teased.

Marlene grinned. “You’re so going to regret that.” She began to move towards Dorcas, still grinning.

“Oh shit oh shit oh shit.” Dorcas hid behind Lily. “You wouldn’t hit a redhead with a mental disability, would you?”

“Hey!” Lily gasped in outrage. “I’m not the one who wore bellbottoms on their head and dived into the lake.”

“You dared me to!” Dorcas answered as she abandoned her attempts to hide from Marlene, instead leaping over obstacles and running around. Marlene followed at an unhurried pace, still smiling, which was somehow more menacing than if she ran.

“Do we stop Marlene from killing Dorcas?” Mary asked Alice. 

“Nope,” Alice said, conjuring some popcorn, watching the chase. “We just enjoy the show.”

——————————————————————————————

“Dorcas, are you limping?” James asked as Dorcas and Lily walked in to the Great Hall and sat next to the group.

“Um, no,” Dorcas replied, trying to conceal it.

“You are. Are you ok? What happened? Did someone hurt you? Who was it? I’ll kill them,” James rambled angrily.

“Merlin, Potter, no need to get so worked up. And we all thought Remus was the mother hen,” Alice said.

“Stuff it, Prewett. Are you ok, Cas?”

“I’m fine, James. Things just got a little crazy at Girl’s Night,” Dorcas answered.

“Didn’t McGonagall ban you guys from having those?” Sirius asked.

“Only for last year,” Mary responded.

“We still don’t know why Cas is limping though?”

“Oh yeah, that’s my bad, James,” Marlene said as she shuffled into the hall, yawning and running a hand through her hair. “I kinda wore her out last night.”

James gaped. “You……..what did you……what?”

Dorcas blushed furiously and elbowed him. “Not like that, James!”

“Oh. Well then hurry it up, this is getting annoying.”

“Go to hell.”

“I’ll see you there.”

“I’ll tell Satan to torture you a lot more,” Dorcas said, throwing sausage at James.

“I’ll tell him you’ve always wanted to be eaten alive by a snake,” James answered, throwing the sausage back.

“Oh my god, will you two just bone already,” Alice said.

Dorcas fell over. James was, for once in his overdramatic life, speechless. Even Remus turned from where he was kissing Sirius to observe the drama.

“I…… would rather fuck a fish, to be honest,” James said, finding his voice again.

“Shut up, Potter, you couldn’t handle me if you tried,” Dorcas teased.

“Is that a bet, Meadowes?” 

Lily looked over at Marlene beside her. Far from looking sleepy, she looked almost murderous as she watched James and Dorcas tease each other.

“Hey,” she said, nudging her friend. Marlene looked at her. “Don’t worry about that. They’re just friends.”

“Pretty flirty for friends,” Marlene muttered.

“Yeah, but that’s it. It’s just a little fun flirting, like how you and Black do sometimes,” Lily reasoned.

“We’re both gay. It’s different,” Marlene responded. “And no one wants me and Black to get together.”

“Black and I.”

“Nobody likes a nerd, Evans.”

“Fight me McKinnon.”

“I will,” Marlene grinned, using a spoon to throw grits at Lily’s face.

“That was the last thing you’ll ever do bitch.” Lily lunged for Marlene.

“Oh shit oh shit oh shit. Please no I have so much to live for. What will happen to my children?”

“Your nonexistent babies can see you in hell.”

“Jesus fuck Red that’s violent- no god please!”

“Lily, dearest?” Alice said calmly.

“Yes Mum?” Lily answered from where she was attempting to strangle Marlene.

“Don’t kill her, we need her alive to keep giving me charms notes.”

“Yes Mum,” Lily said, releasing Marlene, who began to gasp for air.

“Well, I think an attempted murder is the most violent thing we’ve accomplished during breakfast. Well done, team,” Sirius said.

“Not true. Valentine’s breakfast of fifth year,” Peter replied.

“Oh shit, you right,” Sirius responded.

“Right, well, I gotta get to class,” Lily said.

“Wait, could you stay for a minute?” Dorcas asked. “I have something I want to tell everyone.” Lily only had to look into her friend’s eyes to know what she planned to do.

“Are you sure?” Lily asked. “You said you weren’t ready.”

“I don’t think there’ll ever be a better time,” Dorcas answered. “And I trust you guys. I want you all to know.”

“Ok,” Lily said. “Take it away.”

“What is it, Cas?” Alice asked.

“Ok, right well……. Nope, can’t do it, James do it for me.”

“I’m sure he’d do a lot of things for you,” Marlene muttered bitterly.

“Shut up.” Lily elbowed her. “They’re not like that, and even if they were, it would suck but you’re not entitled to her,” she whispered furiously. 

“I know, but I….. whatever, it doesn’t matter,” Marlene said.

“Dorcas, this is yours to tell. Not mine,” James was saying. “You tell them.”

“Tell us what?” Mary asked.

“Yeah, what’s up Cassie?” Sirius asked.

“Right, ok, yeah. Ok. So, I’ve been thinking about it for a while, and, um, I think I’m bisexual.” Dorcas looked nervously at the group.

“Hell yeah, Gay Gryffindor Group,” Lily said, high-giving her friend.

“Wow, two people out of the closet within a few months. I’ve never been prouder,” Sirius said, faking wiping away a tear.

“Shut up, Black,” Alice said. “Dorcas, you’ve always been my favorite daughter-“

“What?”

“Excuse you?”

“Explain.”

“Unacceptable.”

“Sirius you’ve never been her daughter.”

“Doesn’t mean I’m not offended.”

“AS I WAS SAYING,” Alice continued. “Dorcas, honey, you’ve always been my favorite daughter, and that hasn’t changed. Your sisters are trash. You will always be superior.”

“Well, that was rude, but yeah, the basic sentiment was true. We won’t stop loving you because of who you like, Cas,” Mary said.

“Thanks, Mare,” Dorcas said. 

“Welcome to the bi club. There are only two of us, which is ironic, but still, hope you enjoy your stay.” Remus smiled.

“Thanks Remus,” Dorcas grinned, happy her friends accepted her.

“Marly? You’re a bit quiet. Hey, kinda like Cas was when you came out,” James said. Dorcas turned to Marlene, who was looking at everyone except her.

“Marls? You ok?” She asked nervously.

“Huh? I, um, shit. Yeah, yeah, I’m ok Cas. So are you, you know that?” Marlene grinned softly. “You’re pretty fucking brave, Meadowes.”

Dorcas grinned back. The two girls gazed at each other for a few moments, seemingly separate from everyone else.

“Well this is nauseating,” Sirius remarked.

“Like we didn’t catch you and Remus dry-humping on the couch,” Marlene responded without missing a beat.

——————————————————————————————

 

“OK, you two, kitchens, now.” Dorcas burst in to the mostly empty common room and gestured at James and Lily.

“I mean, sure, but why?” James asked.

“I need to talk to you both and I don’t want to be overheard,” Dorcas answered.

“Yeah alright, I’m done studying anyway.” Lily got up and followed Dorcas through the portrait hole, James at her heels.

“Ok, so I’ve hit a minor snag in life,” Dorcas said when they made it into the kitchens.

“What is it?” James asked.

“Marlene is fucking hot and I can’t deal with it.”

“Ok I’m not dealing with this, James you deal with this I swear to god I will cry,” Lily immediately said, turning to James.

“Ok, fine, I’ll handle it. What’s the problem, Cassie?” James asked.

“Ok, so, the doctors told Marlene to take it easy but start getting back into her regular routine, right? So obviously, she needs someone to make sure she doesn’t hurt herself by taking on too much too quick, right?” Dorcas began to ramble.

“Sounds about right,” Lily snorted. “That dumbass would try to lift heavy weights and break her ribs again somehow.”

“Yeah, exactly, so I ask if she needs someone to spot her while she’s working out. That’s probably creepy but I swear I’m just trying to help her.”

“We know, Cas. As long as she’s ok with it you’re fine. If she was uncomfortable, then you back off,” James replied soothingly. “You’re not a creep for being attracted to her.”

“Ok, yeah, yeah. Anyway, she agrees to it, so I go with her to the training shed-“

“Training shed?” Lily asked.

“It’s this shed where beaters hit bludgers around to improve accuracy and lift weights to improve strength. I have to kick Marlene out when she trains for too long in there,” James answered.

“Oh ok. Go on, Dorcas.”

“Right, and so I go to watch and make sure she’s not hurting herself, and she starts stretching and stuff. And she was wearing a tank top and shorts that were like, barely there. Her legs go on for miles, Lily. Miles.”

“Bit too much info for me but ok.”

“Anyway, she’s stretching, and so I can see all of her muscles and her shirt starts to ride up and she has a fucking six-pack, Lily. I’m talking fan-fucking-tastic abs. And then she ties her hair up into this gorgeous messy bun, and she just kind of grins at me? For like a few seconds and she looked so soft but so fucking strong too? And then she started lifting weights. She said she wouldn’t start hitting bludgers until she was fully healed, but weights are ok, I think?” Dorcas directed the last part at James.

“Yeah, weight training should be fine,” James answered.

“Right, and so she started lifting weights and I wanted her to lift me instead, but obviously I didn’t say that out loud. Her arms are so incredible. She could literally do a push-up with me on her back. You know how I know that? She fucking did. She did a ton of push-ups, and I thought she was done when she started planking, but hen she told me to get on her back. I’m no damn fool, so I take the opportunity I’m given. And then she starts doing push-ups with me on her back. I’m going to cry just remembering it.” Dorcas finally finished her rant, breathing heavily and looking wildly between her two friends.

“Holy shit,” Lily said in astonishment.

“That was nothing,” James replied. “One time she went on for literal hours. I timed it. It was scary as hell.”

“Guys, focus, please?” Dorcas asked. “I can’t act this weird around her all the time. She’ll figure out why, and she’ll hate me for it and I’ll lose our friendship!”

“Bullshit,” Lily responded. “Is Marly the type of person who couldn’t get over that?”

“I mean, no but….” Dorcas’s face fell. “I really don’t want to lose her. I mean, she threatened absolute destruction of our dreams over some chocolate. Why would you let go of a girl like that?”

“Cas, you won’t lose her. I swear,” James said, “that things will work out for the best. Remember what I said over the summer?”

“Beginnings are more important than endings.”

“Don’t you think we’ve had a pretty fucking great beginning?” He grinned. Dorcas smiled back. Lily looked at her friend, happy James could cheer her up. Her gaze drifted over to the boy in question, and she smiled as he ruffled Dorcas’s hair.

“What do you guys say we have some ice cream or something, huh? All that useless pining made me hungry,” he remarked teasingly.

“I could go for a pint,” Lily said.

“Bet I can eat mine faster than you.”

“You’re so on, Potter.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel like all I do is take a long time to update and then apologize for it. I'm so sorry again, thanks to anyone who's sticking with this story. I had a hard time with this chapter, writing block really had me. Thanks so much for reading. Leave a comment or a kudos if you enjoyed, I really love hearing from readers.


	11. Planning Day

“I want to do something! I’m bored.” Alice threw her books down on the common room table.

“Come flying with me,” Marlene said brightly. “I’m clear to fly again.”

“You know I hate flying,” Alice replied.

“Yeah but I’m only clear to fly if someone is with me.” Marlene pouted.

“Take Dorcas then,” Lily said from the couch, “isn’t she the one who’s supposed to make sure you don’t overwork yourself?”

“Well, yeah, but she had a really busy day and she’s really tired and I don’t want to bother her. Plus she’s scared of flying and I don’t want to scare her,” Marlene said like it was obvious.

Lily sat up. “How do you know all that? She didn’t say anything about a busy day or being scared of flying.”

“She did that little jaw thing when I asked how her day was,” Marlene reasoned.

“What little jaw thing?” 

“When she’s annoyed or tired, she clenches her jaw. It’s kinda hard to notice but she does it.”

“How do you know that?” Alice asked.

“Years of annoying her. Also her jawline is really sharp and hard not to notice,” Marlene replied, blushing almost imperceptibly. 

“Well, then she should definitely go out with you,” Lily said, stressing the innuendo to make Marlene, usually the shameless one, blush even more.

“What.”

“Yeah, she should go out flying with you. You’re supposed to take it slow, so you can teach her how to fly better and get some flying in yourself. Win-win situation,” Lily argued.

“That’s….. actually a decent point. I’ll go ask her,” Marlene said, going up the stairs to the dorms.

“OK, Dorcas is definitely going to say yes, so the second they leave, the rest of us are having a meeting in the boy’s dorms. We have something to discuss,” Lily hissed to Alice.

Alice looked at her confusedly. “What? Why can’t they be there? What do you have to say?”

Marlene and Dorcas came down the stairs before Lily could answer. 

“Hey guys, Marlene is gonna teach me how to not fall to my death, so we might not be back until dinner. If I don’t come back at all, Marlene is a worse teacher than previously thought,” Dorcas said, grinning despite her previous annoyance.

“Hey!” Marlene shoved her shoulder. “I’m a great teacher. At least a good flying teacher.”

“Uh huh. See you guys later,” Dorcas said as she and Marlene disappeared through the portrait hole.

“Ok come on,” Lily said, jumping up from the couch and bounding up the stairs to the boys’ room.

“Lily, what is this? What are you so excited abut?” Alice asked as Lily tugged her into the room.

“Ok, we’re all here, we can get started now,” James said to everyone. “Lily, if you would present the board?”

“Of course, James,” Lily said, pulling a mini-whiteboard out of her robes’ pocket and enlarging it.

“What the fuck is this? Why are you two playing nice with each other? Why does the whiteboard say Doctor Who theories?” Sirius asked.

“Oh that’s my bad,” Lily said, turning the board to show the other side.

“Operation Dorlene?” Mary read aloud.

“Exactly, dear Mary. Lily, take it away” James said with a flourish.

“Right then. I’m sure you’ve all noticed something between Dorcas and Marlene. The longing glances, the hugs, the closeness, that forehead touch back when Marlene was in the hospital?” Lily began, a marker writing down each example.

“Well, sure, but they’re just really good friends,” Frank said. 

“Yeah, they’re just pals,” Peter echoed.

“Gal Pals,” Lily and James replied in unison.

“What?” Remus asked.

“Listen, what we’re about to tell you is sensitive information. You can’t repeat it, you can’t let anyone know that you know, and you can’t let anyone know we told you,” James said.

“Alright, what’s the big deal?” Frank asked.

“Marlene told Sirius and I that she likes Dorcas,” Lily said. 

“What the fuck, Evans?” Sirius exclaimed. “She said not to tell anyone!”

“I know but it’s ok, Sirius,” Lily replied placatingly. “This is good for her.”

“How?”

“Because Dorcas likes Marlene back!” James said triumphantly.

“Hold on, what? Marlene likes Dorcas? Dorcas likes her back?” Peter asked.

“Yeah, how do you guys know this?” Mary questioned.

“Ok, Marls told me and Sirius she liked Dorcas when she came out to us. It was awhile back, but believe me, she’s still head over heels for her,” Lily answered.

“Cassie came out to me as bi over the summer. That’s why we spent a lot of time hanging out, she needed someone to talk to and I lived nearby and she knew I was accepting. She told me about her huge crush on Marlene about two weeks after she came out to me, and judging by the way she talks about Marlene’s legs, the size of her crush and lady-boner is only growing,” James said.

“Please never say lady-boner again,” Lily groaned. 

“Yeah, I heard it when I said it. Bad choice,” James responded.

“Anyways, we’ve been listening to them go on and on about their big gay feelings for each other for way too long, and we’re tired of it. We need to-“

“Get them to bang,” Sirius grinned. 

“I think they were going to say get them together,” Alice replied.

“Yeah, Alice is right. Although they do need to get rid of their sexual tension somehow,” Lily mused.

“Ok, I assume you’re asking for suggestions, right? Cuz I’ve got the perfect plan,” Sirius said.

“Alright mate, go ahead,” James replied.

“Ok, so we hook Cassie up with a guy. No wait, keep listening. That gets Marlene really jealous. So she goes to confront Dorcas about it, but she only gets more angry. And then, whoops, what do we have here? They’re having angry, passionate sex in a broom closet. That relieves the sexual tension, but knowing Marlene, she’d try to play it off as having an itch to scratch and Dorcas being the easiest way to get to it. So Cas breaks it off with her guy and is in a friends-with-benefits situation with Marlene. Then, say Marlene were to get injured. Maybe she gets hit with a bludger and re-breaks her ribs, maybe a prank she was helping us with backfired. It’s not a big deal, but it’s enough to get Dorcas scared. And then, when she goes to see Marlene in the hospital wing, she confesses all her big gay feelings and Marlene does too and bada bing, bada boom, happily ever after.”

Everyone stared at Sirius in awe and slight horror.

“You know, that’s actually pretty good except for all the pain it would cause them,” Remus said. 

“The pain is necessary, babe. They have to struggle for each other early or they’ll pay for it later,” Sirius replied.

“Ok, I’m putting it on the board, but it’s a last result. Anyone else got anything?” James asked, writing “Painful FWB Situation” on the whiteboard.

“Ooh, a mix-up blind date,” Peter said.

“A what?” Lily asked.

“A mix-up blind date. Tell Marlene you’re setting her up with someone to get her over Dorcas, tell Dorcas the same thing, and have them end up at the same date. Neither of them would waste free food and a night away from us, so they’ll stay despite it being with one another. They’ll realize that they fit well together in a romantic atmosphere, and hopefully they enjoy it enough to want to do it again, so one of them has to ask the other out,” Peter explained.

“That’s really good, Pete,” James remarked. “You’re a romance genius.” He wrote “Blind Date Mix-up” on the board.

“He definitely is,” Mary said, leaning over and kissing Peter’s blushing cheek.

“Ew,” Alice said. “I’m with Sirius. They’ll admit to sexual attraction before romantic feelings. I say we have Dorcas shadow the quidditch team. I’ve been trying to start a school paper. We get it going and assign Dorcas to be a sports reporter. She spends time with the Gryffindor quidditch team, which means she watches Marlene work out all the time. Her self-control will snap like a crisp Cheeto and next thing you know, they’re banging in the locker rooms after a match. After that, they’ll come to you guys,” Alice gestured at Lily and James, “and all you have to do is tell them to confess their feelings and bam! Dorlene is not only boning, they’re in a committed relationship.”

“Too many sex references, I veto,” Lily said. 

“That’s kinda close to how you and I got together,” Frank remarked quietly. 

“First off, ew. But I guess if it worked for you guys, it could work for them,” James decided, writing “Gryffindor Scores And So Does Dorcas” on the board. 

“Nice title,” Lily scoffed, but she was smiling.

“I thought it was pretty clever,” James retorted teasingly.

“Ok, does anyone think it’d be better to let them handle this on their own?” Remus asked.

Everyone turned questions stares towards him.

“Babe,” Sirius said, “we have an opportunity to interfere in their lives for the better. We are so not passing that up.”

“I wouldn’t even pass up interfering in their lives for the worse,” Alice remarked.

“Ok, we have friends-with-benefits, a mix-up blind date, and Gryffindor Scores And So Does Dorcas. Any other suggestions?” James asked, scanning the board.

“Yeah. Just tell them their feelings are mutual and let them handle it,” Remus said. 

“Yeah, we’re not gonna do that,” Mary replied. “Have Cas sing in front of Marly.”

“What?” James asked.

“Oooh, that’s good, Mare, that could really work,” Lily praised.

“Why would that work?” Peter asked.

“Dorcas is a fantastic singer, and Marly really loves her singing,” Lily responded. 

“Yeah, she went on about it for hours. Apparently Dorcas was singing La Vie En Rose in French while she had her hair up in a messy bun and was sleepy and it was the sexiest thing Marlene had ever seen,” Sirius recalled.

“Yeah, she’s got it so bad,” Lily grinned. “But how do we get Dorcas to sing in front of her? It’s not like she does it that often.”

“Ooh, I’ve got it. Everyone’s been kinda down since the Hogsmeade visit, right? What with Mulciber being expelled and everyone else being scared, no one is having much fun. Lily, Remus, you two pitch an idea to McGonagall. A school-wide talent show, to help cheer everyone up and make sure they’re not worrying themselves to death. After she agrees, all we have to do is convince Dorcas to sing, and then, before you know it, bam! She and Marly are making out in a broom closet,” Mary suggested.

“Why do all of your plans end with them making out in a broom closet?” James muttered, but he wrote “Talent Show” on the board.

“Ok, that’s four plans. Anyone else got anything?” Lily asked. “Remus, we know you disapprove, you don’t have to contribute. Frank, anything from you?”

“Actually, I’m with Remus on this. Let them figure it out on their own, we don’t need to cause them unnecessary pain.”

“Boo, you’re useless,” Peter said. Frank just shrugged.

“Thank you for remaining rational, Frank,” Remus said, shooting a smug look at Lily. Lily, ever the mature prefect, stuck her tongue out in retaliation.

“Ok, so the four plans then,” James said. “Let’s take a vote. Which one do we start off with? All in favor of the talent show, say aye.”

“Aye,” said Mary and Peter.

“Ok, that’s two,” James said, putting two tally marks on the board next to Talent Show. “All in favor of Gryffindor Scores And So Does Dorcas, say aye.”

“Aye,” said Alice and Frank.

“Ok, that’s two. All in favor of starting with the Blind Date, say aye.”

“Aye,” said Remus, Lily, James, and, surprisingly, Sirius.

“Ok, that’s four for the blind date. We start there,” James said. “If it doesn’t work, we move to Gryffindor Scores And So Does Dorcas, and if that doesn’t work, we move to the Talent Show. And if, god forbid, none of that works, we move to Sirius’s plan.”

“Alright, when do we start?” Alice asked.

“How about we do the blind date thing next Friday?” Lily asked.

“Sounds good to me. I handle Dorcas, you and Sirius handle Marlene?” James asked.

“Sounds great to me,” Lily answered. 

“Ok, cool. Go ahead and put away the board. The first meeting of Team Dorlene is adjourned. Remember, this information is secret. Do not let anyone know what we are doing,” James said seriously.

“Sure thing, mate” Sirius said.

“Yeah, we won’t have a problem with that. We’ll manage to keep it under wraps,” Mary said. 

The group left the room, talking about their plans for the weekend and homework.

“Do you think this’ll work?” Lily asked, watching them leave.

“No way to tell,” James answered. “But I think that they care enough about each other to make it work.”

“Ok. Right, well, see you at dinner.” Lily began to leave, suddenly feeling awkward.

“Yeah. Hey, Evans, I’ve been meaning to ask you something,” James said, also awkwardly.

“You’re not going to ask me out again, are you? Because, no offense, James, but I’m not really into you like that-“

“No! No, no, Merlin, no,” James chuckled. “That was a jackass move. I’m sorry I bothered you so much about that. I shouldn’t have done that and been so awful about it last year.”

“Oh. Ok then, what is it?” Lily asked, feeling relieved that James wasn’t going to repeat last year.

“I kinda need some help in muggle studies,” James said. “I’m not really around muggles very often, and I’m not doing as well as I should be in the class. Could you help me out?”

“Oh. Sure, James! I would be happy to,” Lily answered. “What do you need help with?”

“I could use some help with this computer stuff. I mean, I kinda get it, but not nearly enough to pass a test on it,” James said.

“Ok, when do you want to get started?” Lily asked.

“Um. Is now good?” James asked, running a hand through his hair. Lily used to be annoyed when he did that, thinking he was trying to look cool, but she now realized it was actually a nervous tick.

“Now is great, James,” she said warmly. James grinned back at her, going to get his textbook.

 

——————————————————————————————

 

“So why did you and James come to dinner together?” Marlene asked, raising an eyebrow.

“I was helping him study for a muggle studies test. Why did you and Dorcas get back so late?” Lily fired back.

Marlene blushed and looked around. “I’ll tell you about that later.”

“And me, right?” Sirius popped up beside them.

“Jesus Christ, Black, how did you even hear us?” Lily asked.

“I hear everything, Evans. You’re gonna tell me too, right?” 

“Yes, Sirius, I’ll tell you too. Meet us in the common room later,” Marlene answered.

“Excellent,” Sirius said. “Got to stay updated.”

“Why?” Marlene asked.

“You listened to me ramble about Remus all last year. Seems fair,” Sirius responded.

“Yeah, I guess so.”

“Also I really love gay drama.”

“There’s the truth.”

“Both of you can fuck off,” Marlene grinned. “My life is not your entertainment.”

“But it’s ever so ridiculous, darling,” Sirius replied.

“Go to hell, Black.”

“I’ll see you there.”

“I will tell Satan that you’re single and into him.”

“I’ll tell him that you want to suck his-“

“And that’s enough from both of you!” Lily said, cutting off the friendly argument. “Please no more, I will cry.”

“Wow, spending time with James has really wound you up, huh?” Marlene said, raising her eyebrows suggestively again.

“Fuck off McKinnon,” Lily replied.

“Yeah yeah.”

 

——————————————————————————————

 

“Ok so give us the details bitch.” Sirius settled on the couch, laying across it with his head on Lily’s lap.

“Ok, so we head out to the field, and obviously I’m not just gonna hand Dorcas a broom and let her steer herself into a building, so I got the steadiest, easiest to control broom I could find and told her to hop on.”

“You wanted her to hop on something else, didn’t you?”

“Shut up Sirius. Anyway, she got on the broom and somehow immediately started wobbling and shit, so I reached out to steady her. My hand brushed up like right on her hip and I just? Can’t handle it? So I grabbed her and made sure she wouldn’t fall off, but she’s still pretty nervous. So I, being a dumb gay idiot, tell her to scoot up and hop on behind her.”

“Oof, did you ‘accidentally’ grope her? I did that to Remus once. He got so flustered.”

“Sirius, first off, ew. Secondly, we’re listening to Marlene now.”

“Right, sorry. Continue.”

“Thanks. Never tell us about you groping Remus again. Anyway, I got on the broom behind her so I’m basically hugging her from behind to steer and make sure she doesn’t fall off and shit, and honestly? I might have abs and muscles and shit but Dorcas has, like, soft curves and a cute tummy and a really nice waist and her hair smells like jasmine-“

“You’re rambling babe.”

“Yes, thanks Lily. So I’m behind her dealing with my internal combustion, and she has the nerve to be all cute and nervous and sweet and shit-“

“Hate it when they do that.”

“Look who’s interrupting now, Evans.”

“At least I’m not interrupting to talk about fondling someone, Black.”

“Cuz you’ve never gotten that far with someone.”

“You know what bitch-“

“Guys! Can we get back to my thing?” Marlene asked.

“Oh right, terribly sorry darling. Go on,” Sirius said.

“Ok, so eventually we get to the point where Dorcas can steer pretty well. Then it’s just a matter of getting her to relax and not be so stiff. So I started talking to her, telling her she was doing really well and how great she was at this, but she stiffened even more for some reason, so I figured talking wasn’t helping. So I started kind of holding on to her waist and then she relaxed. We flew for about half an hour like that before it was time for dinner,” Marlene finished.

“Well that’s incredibly gay,” Sirius remarked.

“Yeah, I’m with Sirius on this. You need to ask her out,” Lily said.

“No! No way,” Marlene answered. “She’s way out of my league, and she doesn’t even like me like that. I need to find a way to get over this ridiculous crush before it gets even more out of hand.”

“I disapprove,” Lily said. “But if you’re that set on it, we could try getting you a date with someone else. Best way to move on is to just move on.”

“Yeah, I think you’re right,” Marlene replied. “I don’t know any other not-straight girls though.”

“Leave that to me,” Lily said. “I’ll set you up.”

“Ok, yeah, that works,” Marlene responded. “Sirius, what do you think?”

“I say you should ask Cas out, but if you really don’t want to, moving on is your best option,” Sirius answered.

“Ok. How about next Friday?” Lily suggested. 

“Sounds good to me,” Marlene said. She yawned. “Ok, I’m headed to bed. Lily, you coming?”

“I think I’m gonna stay down here a bit, get a head start on some assignments. Christmas break is coming up soon, I don’t want to spend it working.”

“Of course not, miss perfect prefect. Goodnight then,” Marlene said, making her way up the stairs. Lily turned to Sirius when she was gone. 

“Go get James and tell him to come down here. He needs to know that Marlene is in for the blind date.”

“On it,” Sirius said, scrambling up the stairs.

James appeared a moment later, groggily walking down the stairs. “What’s this I hear about an advancement in the plan, Evans?”

“Marlene has agreed to allow me to set her up on a blind date next Friday,” Lily said triumphantly.

“Is it because of the flying from earlier?” James asked, sitting down next to Lily.

“Yep. She’s too scared to ask Cas out, so she wants to try to forget about it.”

“A classic denial of feelings. Excellent. Dorcas came to me about the flying too, said she was going crazy and she had to find a way to get Marlene off her mind. I’ll pitch the blind date to her and she’ll probably agree. Then we just have to plan it and we’re all set,” James said, eyes gleaming.

“Yep,” Lily replied. “This is gonna be good.”

“Hey, while we’re down here, you mind helping me a bit more with muggle studies?” James asked.

“Not at all,” Lily responded. “What do you need to know?”

 

——————————————————————————————

 

The next day, Alice couldn’t contain her slight squeal upon finding James and Lily asleep on the couch together. James was sitting up straight with his head tilted back, and Lily was curled into his side with her head on his shoulder.

“Cas,” Alice hissed. “Get down here quick. And bring your camera.”

“Why, what’s going on- oh my god.” Dorcas immediately began snapping photos. “How long have they been like that?”

“Since last night? I never heard Lily come into the dorms,” Alice replied.

“This is too much for me. This is too good.”

“It’s about to be really bad for you.”

The girls noticed far too late that Lily had her eyes open.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, two chapters in one week. I'm amazed at myself. Hope you enjoyed that, cuz I really enjoyed writing it. If you have any questions, suggestions, or just want to talk, leave a comment! I really love getting them. Please also leave a kudos if you liked it. I recently got me a tumblr, so you can find me there @uselesssmolgay. I only post a little bit, but if you wanna come talk I would love that. Thanks for reading!


	12. Lily Evans Comes to the Inescapable Conclusion That Her Friends Are Both Geniuses And Emotionally Unhealthy Dumbasses

“If you want someone to listen to your problems, hire a therapist, because I don't wanna fuckin deal with it.”

“Damn, I haven’t even said anything yet,” Remus said, sitting beside Lily at their table in the library. 

“Didn’t have to, I can sense gay angst. It’s my superpower,” Lily replied.

“That’s a shite superpower.”

“Yeah, I know. It’s so common around here it’s like sensory overload all the time. Walking next to Sirius is like looking into the sun. What’s wrong?” Lily asked, noticing the dark circles under her friend’s eyes and the way he seemed hesitant to speak.

“It’s just…… Sirius’s birthday is coming up. Or, well, a celebration for his birthday. And I don’t know what to get him,” Remus sighed.

“Bitch, you know him better than anyone. Get him something that has meaning to both of you or some sappy shit,” Lily responded, not understanding the dilemma.

“No, the problem is a bit more complicated than that. Sirius loves his birthday. Ever since he came to Hogwarts, we’ve had parties and big pranks and we all spoil him for a day and he loves it. He comes up with a list of demands- not gifts, demands- every year so we all know what to get or do for him.”

“Ok. So he’s not doing that this year?” Lily asked.

“No, he’s not. He’s always playing quidditch or studying. He hasn’t been sleeping lately and he’s lost his appetite. I’m worried about him,” Remus said. Lily took note of the fear in her friend’s voice.

“That’s not all, is it?” She guessed.

“He’s… he shut me out,” Remus mumbled, running a hand through his hair. “He won’t tell me what’s wrong and he’s finding excuses to be away from me. We haven’t slept together in weeks.”

“Ew, way too much information!”

“Not like that!” Remus exclaimed. “God Evans, get your mind out the gutter. We share a bed most nights, cuz Gryffindor tower gets cold and he likes to cuddle, but he’s been sleeping on his own.”

“Ok, I’ll admit he’s been a little off lately. What do you want me to do about it?” Lily asked.

“Just talk to him I guess? He won’t open up to me, and I don’t think he’s talking to James either. Besides us, you and Marly are his best friends. He might talk to you guys,” Remus answered. 

“Alright. I’ll call for a common room sleepover. Oh hey, we’re all still in for the mix-up blind date on Friday, right?” Lily asked. “Pete’s gonna get the house elves to set up a picnic in the Astronomy tower during dinner, and James and I made sure that they’ll both end up there.”

“Yeah, I’m still all in Evans,” Remus grinned. “Could you just make sure about Sirius though? I have to be able to help him, but he won’t let me, and I don't want him to deal with whatever it is on his own.”

“I've totally got it handled. You can count on me, I will have Sirius back to normal in no time, with absolutely no harm done.”

 

——————————————————————————————

 

‘So Remus definitely couldn’t count on me,’ Lily thought as she snuck silently through the halls, following her friend.

“Come on, it’s through here,” Sirius said, taking another swig from a bottle of firewhisky while stumbling down a hall drunkenly.

“Sirius, we have quidditch practice tomorrow, we really shouldn’t be doing this, and you definitely can’t show up hungover to practice, James will kill you,” Marlene said, glancing around warily. 

“James won’t care about how hungover I am if we pull this off,” Sirius replied. Marlene shot a look at Lily, clearly hoping Lily would be able to stop her friend. But as per usual, Lily simply had no idea how to deal with the Marauder.

——————————————————————————————

*3 hours earlier*

“Common room sleepover tonight bitches,” Lily said, plopping down next to Sirius and Marlene at dinner.

“Oh good I have hot fuckin gossip,” Marlene said.

“Is it that you had a crisis cuz Cas was hot?” Sirius asked, not taking the bait.

“Fuck off,” Marlene shot back.

“Uh huh. Look, Red, I’m not sure I can make it. I have a lot of work to be doing and holidays are coming up soon…”

“Come on, Sirius, you gotta be there. You haven’t missed one since we started them! Please please please please please please please please please please-“

“Ok damn, I’ll be there,” Sirius said, cutting Lily off before she could continue.

“Ok good. Bring your alcohol of choice, we’re getting wasted tonight!”

Later that night, the three dumbasses met in the common room. Everyone in Gryffindor knew to avoid the common room when Sirius, Lily, and Marlene were there. The warning had become part of the prefects’ introduction speech. It was common knowledge that when the three were together, very few good things happened.

“Ok, are we playing a drinking game or are we just drinking and talking?” Marlene asked. Marlene, being a basic white bitch, had three bottles of wine in her hand, preferring that to firewhisky.

“Drinking game,” Lily answered. “Never Have I Ever.”

“Ooh, excellent,” Sirius said. “I brought firewhisky for fun and vodka for shots.”

“Goddamnit, I had hoped he would forget he had that,” Marlene complained. 

“Not likely bitch. Let’s get crunk,” Sirius said.

“Ok ok, lemme start. Uh, never have I ever hooked up with someone in a broom closet,” Lily said, smirking as Sirius took a shot.

“I feel targeted,” Sirius whined. “Never have I ever had a sexuality crisis because I realized I was into girls.”

Marlene and Lily took a shot. Sirius gaped and Marlene shot a surprised look at Lily.

“What?” Lily said. “Girls are hot. Have you seen them?”

“How did we not know about this?” Marlene asked.

“I figured out I was attracted to them in fourth year and after a bit of freaking out I just kinda decided not to worry about it. It’s not that big a deal here compared to the muggle world, so I just kinda went with it. I don’t really care about labels, so I never came out or anything. I just like whoever the fuck I want, regardless of gender,” Lily responded. 

“Yeah, ok then. I guess that makes sense. Never have I ever kissed a girl,” Marlene said. Both Sirius and Lily drank.

“Marly, I mean this in the nicest way possible, but dating you was awful,” Sirius said. 

“Same to you,” Marlene giggled. “Lily, who was it?”

“Emmeline Vance,” Lily responded. “She’s not out though, so don’t go spreading that around.”

“Yeah, sure thing. Ravenclaw prefect in our year, right?” Sirius asked.

“Yeah. We went on a few dates. She was fun, and a good kisser.”

“Yeah, she’s pretty hot.”

“No, you know who’s hot? Her ex-boyfriend,” Sirius chimed in.

“And now we’re moving on. Never have I ever…. Gotten into a huge fight with my parents,” Lily said, looking for Sirius’s reaction. He scowled but drank along with Marlene.

“Pretty rude, taking advantage of our gay sadness like that,” Marlene said cheerfully, not offended by her friend's comment.

“Yeah yeah. Sirius, you’re up,” Lily said.

“Never have I ever been called a freak by a sibling,” Sirius said spitefully. Apparently he was offended by Lily's comment. Her plan to provoke him may have worked a little too well.

Lily went pale. She heard Marlene reproaching Sirius, but it sounded as though she were underwater. A buzzing noise began in her head. It sharpened until she could hear her sister calling her a freak over and over and over. Freak, disgrace, nasty, wrong, shameful, round and round the insults went in her head. She could feel Marlene shaking her shoulder, but it just felt like all those times Petunia had tried to shake her into seeing sense. Freak, monster, shameful, freak, monster, shameful, freak, mons-

“Lily? Merlin, Lily, I’m sorry. I’m so so sorry, I was angry and I wasn’t thinking, god I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it, you don’t deserve that, I’m sorry,” Sirius rambled, reaching out to hug her but pulling back, unsure if he had permission to.

“It’s ok,” Lily gasped out, only now realizing she was hyperventilating.

“Ok, hey, try and match your breathing to mine, alright? Here, put your hand right there-“ Sirius held Lily’s hand against his chest. “Ok, breathe in when I do and breathe out when I do. Breathe in-“ Sirius sucked in a breath for about 4 seconds, Lily gasped a bit but tried to match it. “And out.” Sirius exhaled for 4 seconds. Lily managed to do it with him. After a few more times, Lily was breathing normally. She was suddenly aware of the grip she had on Marlene’s wrist, unknowingly feeling for her friend’s pulse. Marlene had a hand covering hers.

“I’m ok,” Lily said, showing a small smile. “I’m alright, just had a bit of a fit is all.”

“You had a panic attack, Lily,” Sirius replied. “I gave you a panic attack, fuck, I'm awful, I’m so sorry.” He scrambled away from her, falling over himself to put distance between them, looking almost afraid.

“No, Sirius, it’s ok. I’m alright. Just…. Why did you say that?” Lily asked confusedly. Sirius knew how much her sister’s comments hurt her, it was how their friendship had begun. Why would he use them against her now?

“It’s just…. I’m in a bit of a conundrum,” Sirius said.

“Explain, please?” Marlene asked, a little bit testy now that he had hurt Lily.

“My parents…. They want Regulus to join the Death Eaters,” Sirius answered. “And he’s going along with it. Pretending that he thinks it’s right, that it’s ok, and I hate it. I told him, I told him they wouldn’t be happy until he died for them. Why won’t he fucking listen to me?” 

“Oh god, Sirius. That’s awful, I’m so sorry,” Marlene responded, moving to wrap him in a hug.

“I hate that he lets them manipulate him. Can’t he see they don’t care about him? How blind is he?”

“I know, it sucks, but what can we do about it?” Lily asked.

“Nothing really. I’m just so tired of him choosing them when they’d drop him in a heartbeat,” Sirius said, sounding exhausted.

“Yeah.” Lily didn’t quite know how to respond. When Remus had told her that Sirius seemed to be in a bad mood, she imagined the cause to be something minor, not something as painful as a sibling openly supporting the wrong side.

“It’s shite, and he’s so stupid. I hate him. I hate him,” Sirius said. Both of the girls could tell he didn’t really mean it. “You know what? If I can’t make him see sense, I can make sure he nows what he’s up against. Saddle up, bitches, we’re going to prank the Slytherins.”

 

——————————————————————————————

*Present time*

“Sirius, we don’t even have a plan and you’ve drained an entire bottle of firewhisky since we left the common room, plus all those shots earlier,” Lily said, trying to talk sense into her friend.

“I have a plan,” Sirius replied, slurring slightly. "I have a fan-fucking-tastic plan for a marvelous, astonishing, outstanding prank."

“And what would that be?” Marlene asked.

“We sneak into the Slytherin dorms and we fill all their shampoo bottles with hair remover. Reg showers every morning, and god knows he doesn’t use proper products. It’ll be great,” Sirius explained.

“That’s actually pretty good,” Marlene said. "You oversold it a bit, but it's decent."

“Don’t encourage him,” Lily replied. “Sirius, this is a bad idea. And not a very healthy way to deal with your emotions.”

“You just had a panic attack, Red, are you really an authority on mental health?” Sirius shot back.

“Fair enough,” Lily sighed after a few moments of consideration. “But don’t get caught. And I’ll be the lookout, ok?”

“Ok,” Sirius responded as they reached what Lily recognized as the entrance to the Slytherin’s dormitory.

“Oh, and I’ll go along with this on one condition,” Lily added as Sirius was about to enter.

“Ok, what’s that?”

“Talk to Remus about all this. He may not be able to fix everything, but telling him will help, I promise,” Lily said.

“Yeah, but doesn’t he have enough to worry about?” Sirius questioned.

“Yeah, but he’ll want to know about this. He’s worried for you. You don’t have to do much, just tell him what’s been going on and let him comfort you.” 

Marlene was tactfully pretending to have not heard this as Sirius pondered it. Finally, he nodded.

“Yeah, alright Red. I’ll tell him.”

“Good. Now go do your stupid prank.”

In the morning, Sirius was so busy talking to Remus that he completely missed seeing the results of his prank as every Slytherin walked into the Great Hall totally hairless. The other Gryffindors loved it, and Marlene and Lily shared a smile when Regulus walked in, his bald head as pale as the rest of him.

 

——————————————————————————————

 

“Ok, everything is a go on my end,” James said to Lily. “Dorcas is exited for her date and she knows to go to the top of the astronomy tower to meet the mystery person.”

“Marly is thrilled to spend an evening away from us and is happy to have a meal under the stars,” Lily replied. “I put Peter in charge of the menu. Remus would have made it all tea, Sirius would have made it all junk food, and Alice just has really bad taste.”

“Yeah, good choice,” James said. “Ok. Let’s round up the team. Meet in the library in ten? Marly and Cas are currently studying together in the common room.”

“Sounds great. Let’s do this.”

Within ten minutes, the gang was gathered in the library, each obviously excited.

“Welcome, ladies and gentleman, to the day we’ve all been waiting for: the day Marly and Cas hopefully get together and stop their useless gay pining,” James said. 

“Now, let’s review what’s happening in…. 3 hours and 13 minutes,” Lily said. “Pete, the menu for the date?”

“Thanks, Lily. So I’ve started them off with some classic butter and bread, then we move on to a nice romaine and olive salad with feta cheese, a favorite of Dorcas’s. Next, a rack of lamb with a raspberry-chocolate sauce, the same dinner they had on the first night of this year. For dessert, a chocolate molten lava cake with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and assorted berries,” Peter listed off. “The meal will be delivered by house-elves, who were more than happy to help.”

“Damn, Pete, I’m coming to you to plan my dates from now on,” Frank said, clapping Peter on the back. Peter shrugged modestly and sat down. 

“Excellent job, Peter, I knew I could count on you,” Lily said.

“Yes, well done, mate. I’m sure it’ll be better than anyone could imagine,” James said. “Now, Sirius, Alice, is the venue secure? No chance of interruptions?”

“But of course, we've done an excellent job if I do say so myself,” Sirius replied. “We’ve set up a wonderful amount of little tricks and problems for Filch to deal with that will keep him well away from the astronomy tower.”

“It’ll be hell for him,” Alice promised with a glint in her eye. She had hated Filch ever since he gave her a detention after catching her and Frank in a broom closet after-hours. "He'll regret ever leaving his office tonight. Nothing can save his sanity now."

“Marvelous. And rather frightening. Frank, Mary, the romantic setting is as wonderful as we hoped?” Lily asked. 

“Oh, it’s amazing, Lily,” Mary said. “Candles all along the stairs, lighting the way up.”

“A sturdy table, beautiful tablecloth, excellent view, we even set up a radio behind a sconce that plays classical romantic music,” Frank said. “That was Mary’s idea.”

“It sounds incredible, nice work. Remus, you know your job?”

“Back-up for any and all roles,” Remus answered.

“Right you are. If anything goes wrong, you need to be on top of it. Lily and I are gonna be setting up an eavesdropping charm, make sure we can listen in. We can also hop in if needed, but assume it’s all on you, ok?” James said.

“Got it,” Remus answered. “I love pressure.”

“Damn that’s hot,” Sirius remarked, leaning over to kiss Remus. "I bet I can show you what pressure feels like-"

“Ok, everyone is ready! Now remember team, we may get another shot at this, but the sooner they stop this mutual pining shit, the better. So screw-ups aren’t monumental, but be as perfect as possible, ok? We need this to work. To get them together and happy and to spare the rest of us from their useless lesbianism. Team Dorlene on three.” James said, sticking his hand out. Everyone else put their hands on his.

“1, 2, 3.”

“TEAM DORLENE!” Everyone shouted, and then winced as Madam Pince shushed them.

“Ok, meeting adjourned. Good luck, everyone,” Lily whispered as everyone filed out of the library.

“Think we got this?” James asked, falling in to walk next to Lily.

“Not in the slightest. Let’s do it though.” She replied, grinning up at him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, sorry it's been awhile! With midterms coming up, life hasn't exactly been the easiest. I know the Regulus-Sirius angst may seem random, but it will actually become important to the plot. Yes, there is in fact a plot, I'm surprised about that too. Hope you enjoyed the chapter, leave a comment and kudos if you did, I really love getting them. Thanks for reading!


	13. The Date

“Ok, eavesdropping charm is done,” James said, sitting next to Lily on the couch in the common room.

“Excellent. Everything is set up. Now all we have to do is wait.”

“Yep. Hey, I’ve got a paper due in Muggle Studies about their Christmas traditions. Mind if I ask you a bit about that?”

“No, go ahead, I don’t have anything better to do at the moment,” Lily answered.

“Excellent. Muggles have Christmas trees, right?”

“Yes they do. Unless they’re not into celebrating Christmas.”

“Right, then they have that candle thing,” James said.

“A menorah, you mean? Yeah, Jewish people have those, but there are other religions than catholic, protestant, and jewish. A lot of religions have celebrations around this time of year,” Lily replied.

“Oh, ok. So the celebration is different depending on the religion?”

“Yeah. Are wizards not religious?” Lily asked.

“I mean, I’m sure some are, but most don’t seem to be. At least that I know of,” James answered.

“Huh, that’s pretty interesting. I wonder if-“

“LILY!”

James jumped almost a foot off his seat. “What the bloody hell was that?”

“The screams of a monster,” Lily replied gravely. “Marlene.”

“Oh, ok. You should probably go deal with that,” James said.

“Yeah. Rain check on the studying?”

“Sure thing, Evans.”

Lily bounded up the stairs, bursting into the girls’ dormitory. “What’s the issue, you worthless whore?”

“Where’s my fucking eyeliner?” Marlene asked. 

“You look fine without it, bitch, grow some confidence.”

“Fuck off you little ginger troll. I know I look good, but I want my fucking eyeliner.”

“Why are you two arguing so much?”Dorcas asked from where she was studying on her bed.

“Marlene has a date and I totally gave her eyeliner to Sirius. Sorry babe,” Lily said the last part to Marlene, who groaned in response.

“Oh. You, uh, you have a date? That’s…. That’s great Marls. Who, um, who are you going with?” Dorcas stuttered.

“Oh, I don’t know, Lily set up a blind date,” Marlene said as she walked back into the bathroom.

“Lily!” Dorcas whispered-shouted as soon as Marlene was out of sight. “You know I like her, why would you do that?”

“James said you were trying to get over her, I thought it might be easier if she was with someone else!” Lily defended. 

“Oh. That actually kinda makes sense,” Dorcas replied. "Sorry."

“Ok. You good?” Lily checked.

“Yeah. James set me up on a date tonight too, actually,” Dorcas said.

“Yeah, he told me about it. We compared notes for planning them,” Lily responded. Everything was going according to the plan so far.

“Oh so you two were spending time….comparing notes, huh?” Dorcas said with a suggestive smirk.

“Oh shut up. It was literally studying and planning your dates, so you have no room to judge,” Lily replied.

“Wait, Cas, you’re going on a date too?” Marlene asked, walking back into the room.

“Uh, yeah, James set it up,” Dorcas replied.

“Oh. That’s… that’s cool. Do you know who it’s with?” Marlene asked.

“Nah, he said the girl was a friend of his though.”

“Oh, that’s cool. That’s good. I mean, it’s good that you’re getting out there, you know?” Marlene rambled.

“Yeah. So, good luck to both of us, I guess?” Dorcas responded. “I’m gonna go ask James about where I’m gonna be.”

“Have fun. Use protection, and if the sex is wildly kinky tell us about it tomorrow!” Lily called after her. Dorcas flipped her off as she left.

“Lily what the flippity flappity floppity fuck,” Marlene hissed. 

“What?” Lily asked.

“Dorcas is going on a date?” 

“I thought the whole point of this was for you to get over her? Just relax, bitch, think about your own date,” Lily replied.

“Yeah, ok. Will you tell me who I’m gonna be meeting?” Marlene asked.

“No. Just go to the astronomy tower when it’s time for dinner,” Lily answered.

“Ugh, fine. Give me something we have in common so I don’t seem like an awkward idiot,” Marlene complained.

“Ok, damn. She doesn’t play quidditch, but she knows a bit about it. She enjoys reading, especially muggle novels. She’s generally a decent person? I don’t know what you want me to tell you,” Lily said, describing Dorcas as vaguely as possible. She didn’t like lying, but she couldn’t give the truth away either.

“Ok, I can work with that. Thanks for this, babe, I owe you one,” Marlene said. “Now scram, I’ve got to get changed.”

“Ok. Astronomy Tower at 7, don’t be late, she’s very punctual,” Lily said, exiting the room to find James and Dorcas deep in conversation.

“Ok, so where am I going to be?” Dorcas asked.

“Astronomy Tower, at 7. Please dress nice. I know you’re fond of wearing sweatpants and dumb t-shirts, but please wear something decent looking. I’ve worked so hard to make this a romantic, lovely date,” James said. “I will start crying if I find out you showed up in a baggy t-shirt.”

“Don’t be so dramatic, you dumbass. I’ll put on something nice, ok?” Dorcas groaned, swatting at him. 

“Ok. It’s probably best you wait until Marlene is done getting ready, she’s turned the dorms into pigsty,” Lily said.

“Yeah. I think I’m gonna grab a drink in the kitchens or something,” Dorcas said, walking out of the room. James and Lily smiled at each other.

“Everything good on your end?” James asked.

“Both showed signs of jealousy when they found out the other had a date. Neither suspects anything,” Lily replied.

“Excellent,” James grinned. “Let the games begin!”

 

——————————————————————————————

 

Everyone was gathered in the common room, which was where James had set the eavesdropping charm to work. He had tried to explain the spell, eventually calling it an undetectable magic walkie-talkie. Most of the group still didn't quite understand, but as long as they had front row seats to the entertainment, they didn't really care about how it worked.

“Wait, wait, everyone shut up!” Alice said, hitting those nearest to her. “I think Cas just showed up.”

A hush fell over the group as they all strained their ears.

“Marls?” They heard Dorcas ask. 

“Cas?” Marlene replied.

“What are you doing here?” Dorcas asked.

“I could ask you the same.” Marlene returned.

“I’m supposed to meet my date here,” Dorcas said.

“Me too,” Marlene responded. “Wait, we’re not each other’s date, are we?”

“No, they wouldn’t do that,” Dorcas said. 

“Fools,” Frank said and was immediately shushed by everyone.

“-must have gotten the times mixed up or something,” Marlene was saying. “Eh, who cares, we get free food.”

“Yeah, plus a night away from the others,” Dorcas replied. “In that case, Marlene McKinnon, would you stay at this date with me?”

“What a dork,” Sirius said. 

Remus hit him with a pillow. "Shhh, it's kinda romantic."

“I’d be honored,” Marlene said. 

“What kinda gay shit is this?” Lily remarked as they heard two chairs being pulled out.

“Shhhh, I wanna take notes on this,” James said. Sure enough, he had a notepad and quill out, poised to write down whatever he heard. 

‘What a nerd,’ Lily thought fondly. Then she internally berated herself for thinking fondly about James Potter. 

“I didn’t get to tell you earlier, but you look incredible, Marls,” Dorcas said.

“Thanks, Cas. You look amazing too,” Marlene said. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you in a blazer.”

“Yeah, James told me I had to look nice or he'd cry,” Dorcas replied. 

“At least he wasn’t actively sabotaging you like Lily did to me,” Marlene laughed.

“If Lily was sabotaging you and you still look this good, I think there’s nothing anyone can do to make you look less than gorgeous,” Dorcas said quietly.

“That was smooth as hell,” Peter said.

“Yeah I’m writing that down to use someday,” James responded.

“Thank you, Cas. That’s….. that’s really sweet.”

“Sure. Hey, do you know when our food gets here?”

“And that’s the house elf’s cue,” Peter muttered.

“Hello, Ms. McKinnon and Ms. Meadowes. I have some bread and butter for you, and your salads should be coming out soon,” a tinny voice said.

“Is that Kitsy?” Lily asked.

Peter nodded. “She’s the house elf that always gets us snacks, so I figured she’d be willing to help with this.”

“Thanks, Kitsy,” the group heard Dorcas say.

“I can’t believe we get free food because Lily and James are idiots,” Marlene said.

“All of our food is free,” Dorcas replied.

“Nuh-uh,” Marlene responded, clearly talking through a mouthful of bread. “We pay for it by dealing with our idiot friends.”

“Fair point,” Dorcas said. “Speaking of idiots, you’re ready for the quidditch game on Sunday, right?”

“Hell yeah. It’s been too long since the last one, I’ve gotten so bored.”

“You won’t do anything stupidly risky, right?” Dorcas asked.

“Now Cas, when have I ever done something stupid, risky, or a combination of the two?”

“Every day. I’m honestly surprised you haven’t tried to jump off this tower just to prove you could,” Dorcas replied.

“I could totally survive the fall,” Marlene exclaimed. “Look, if I were to jump from here-“

“Oh my god she’s a dumbass,” Sirius said. He turned to Lily. “We set her up on the perfect date and she wants to jump off the tower. You raised a dumbass.”

“Uh, just because we got a divorce doesn’t mean you didn’t help raise her,” Lily answered. “This is at least fifty percent your fault.” Sirius started to protest but was cut off when Dorcas spoke again.

“Marlene, get down from the ledge,” Dorcas said exasperatedly. “If you fall and die Sirius and Lily will kill me. They’ll laugh first but then they’ll kill me.”

“True,” Lily and Sirius said in unison.

“Ugh, fine. But I could totally survive the fall,” Marlene replied.

“No you absolutely could fucking not and you’re an idiot for thinking so,” Dorcas said fondly. “And do you really want to die in that dress?”

“Um, yes? I look incredible bitch, and you know it.”

“You’d ruin it in the fall and then you couldn’t be buried in it.”

“Who said anything about a burial? I want a viking funeral. Put my body in a boat with my most prized possessions, set in on fire, then push it into the lake so my burning body sails off gloriously into the sunset,” Marlene said.

“You’ve planned all that out but you totally don’t know what you want to do after Hogwarts, huh?” 

“Shut up. Professional quidditch player is a viable option.”

“Of course it is, but what happens if you get hurt, or if a teammate gets you fired or something?”

“First off, if someone tried to get me fired I’d hit them with a bat. Second, I don’t get hurt,” Marlene replied.

“You very recently almost bled out.”

“Ok, so I’ve gotten hurt once,” Marlene said. “However, I am a badass and also immortal.”

“Oh sweet Jesus, not this again,” Dorcas laughed. 

“Yes this again. I’m indestructible and there is nothing you can do abut it.”

"Oh, I’m sure you have a weakness,” Dorcas flirted.

“And what do you think that is, Meadowes?” Marlene asked.

“Hmmmm, could it be… pretty girls?”

“It would explain why my knees have been weak all night.”

“Damn, that was smooth,” Lily said. “How’d she do that?”

“Oh please, they’ve been flirting with each other since they were fourteen, it’s not like it’s all new to them,” Alice scoffed. 

“Yeah, you’re right,” Lily replied.

“Ms. McKinnon, Ms. Meadowes, your salads,” Kitsy’s voice appeared again.

“Ooh, yes, this is my favorite salad,” Dorcas said.

“How on earth does someone have a favorite salad? That can’t be normal,” Marlene replied. Her voice was mostly exasperated, but Lily knew her well enough to hear the note of fondness in it as well. 

“We can’t all die without ever touching a vegetable,” Dorcas said in response, then moaned.

“Oh my god, are they fucking?“ Sirius almost shouted.

“This salad is so damn good,” Dorcas groaned.

“Oh, never mind, Dorcas is just really into salad. What the fuck? That really can’t be normal.” Sirius said in disappointment.

“Uh, Cas, I’m not gonna eat this, so if you want mine-“

“Oh my god give it to me,” Dorcas exclaimed, grabbing Marlene’s plate as Marlene snickered quietly. “You’re laughing now, but you won’t be when you’re in the hospital with diabetes from too many sugary foods.”

“I’d rather die a hero than live long enough see myself become a villain,” Marlene answered solemnly. “And by villain I mean someone who gets turned on by salad.”

“Who said it was the salad that turned me on?” Dorcas asked.

“Oh sweet Jesus, I’m not sure I wanna hear this,” Remus muttered.

“Like you haven’t said filthy things to Sirius when you thought Pete and I were asleep,” James retorted. Remus blushed and promptly shut up, making the others snicker and Sirius kiss his cheek.

“Well, you certainly weren’t moaning like that for any other reason, were you?” Marlene answered Dorcas.

“Mmm, I can think of a few reasons, actually,” Dorcas replied.

“And what might those be?” Marlene flirted. Lily could practically see her smirk.

“Your entrees have arrived,” Kitsy’s voice called out.

“Damn it, that was gonna be good,” Mary said in disappointment.

“Holy shit this looks delicious,” Marlene gasped. 

“What kind of sauce is that?” Dorcas asked. “It looks so good.”

“Here, try it,” Marlene said.

“Marlene, we have forks for a reason, I’m not gonna eat it off your finger,” Dorcas responded.

“Oh my god, lick the sauce off her finger then lick something else later,” Alice chuckled. “This is almost too much.”

“Oh come on, just try it,” Marlene wheedled.

“Alright, alright,” Dorcas relented. “Holy shit that’s good.”

“Right?” Marlene said. “This is so much nicer than regular dinner.”

“Yeah, plus we don’t have Lily and the other vultures trying to steal our food,” Dorcas responded.

“I’m offended,” Lily said. “We don’t steal that much of their food.”

“Dorcas hasn’t eaten a full meal in 3 days,” James replied.

“Ok whatever. Did anyone ask for your opinion?” Lily teased.

“And we don’t have to deal with James and Lily flirting,” Marlene snickered.

“What?!” Lily and James cried out in unison.

“Oh my god, right?” Dorcas laughed. “All of the flirty banter is gonna drive me insane.”

“Yeah, honestly. And they’re always, like, a package deal now? It’s ridiculous.”

“Ok, none of that is true,” Lily said, looking around at her friends, who all found excuses to not meet her gaze.

“You know what we should totally do?” Dorcas asked.

“What’s that?” Marlene replied.

“We should totally try to set them up,” Dorcas answered, laughing.

“Oh my god!” Mary almost shrieked. “This is too much, this is too good for me, I’m gonna die.”

“Shut up, this is awful,” Lily replied, face burning. 

“No, wait, this is actually good. They’ve created a reason to spend time together,” Frank said. “This means that they’ll be off together trying to set up a plan, so we have more time to set up ours.”

“So Lily and I have to pretend we’re into each other so we can get them together?” James questioned.

“I think that could actually work,” Peter mused.

“Yeah, they have a common goal now,” Sirius said. “Sorry Red, looks like this is something you’ve got to do for the cause.”

“Do we really need them to get together that much?” Lily asked desperately. “I mean, they can totally handle this on their own, right?”

“Sorry, Lily, this is happening,” Remus said. 

“Dessert has arrived,” Kitsy’s voice called out over Marlene and Dorcas’ laughter. “Once you are finished, I will clean everything up, so you may leave. The ones who planned this told me to inform you that there is an empty classroom down the hall to your left, in case you find yourselves wishing to…delay the end of the evening. Have a wonderful night.”

“Oh my god,” Marlene said. “Do they seriously expect me to get laid on the first date?”

“Seems like it. They have a lot of faith in you having game,” Dorcas giggled.

“Hey, I have game!” Marlene protested.

“You had Lily set you up on a blind date.”

“And I like to think my date quite enjoyed my company. I know I enjoyed hers,” Marlene said.

“See, that was decent, but it could be better,” Dorcas teased.

“And what do you suggest I do to….. improve?” Marlene said quietly, almost a dare.

“I never heard exactly what you think of my attempts to look nice,” Dorcas said in the same tone.

“Oh my god it’s happening!” Sirius squealed.

“Shut up!” Lily shushed him.

“What do I think of your attempts to look nice. Hmmm. I think that the only reason I’m not getting laid on the first date is that you weren’t supposed to be my date.”

“And if I was?” Dorcas challenged.

“Then I would have already dragged you into that empty classroom twenty minutes ago,” Marlene said huskily.

Dorcas went quiet, as did Marlene. The group listening was stunned into silence as well.

“Did she just-“

“She did.”

“Jesus Christ.”

“There’s no way they don’t bone after that,” Frank said. 

“Everyone shut the hell up,” James said, straining his ears to hear what happened next.

“Ok. Ok, I can admit it. You’ve got game,” Dorcas conceded.

“Thank you,” Marlene replied smugly.

“That totally would have worked on your actual date,” Dorcas said. 

“Yeah, I’m a bit sad I didn’t get to test it out,” Marlene responded. “But I think this was more fun than some blind date would have been.”

“Dammit, how are they this dumb?” Mary cried. “That was literally perfect!”

“I know,” Sirius lamented. “That should’ve been it.”

“Well, I don’t think we’re in need of an empty classroom, but it is getting late,” Dorcas said. “Shall I walk you to your dorm, Miss McKinnon?”

“Ah, what a perfect gentleman,” Marlene snickered. “Of course you may accompany me, but don’t try anything untoward. A lady has a reputation to maintain, after all.”

“But of course, Mademoiselle,” Dorcas replied. The group heard them as they exited the tower.

“Boo!” Sirius cried. “These bitches are so stupid!”

“How did they not get that?” Peter mumbled confusedly.

“They should have at least used the empty classroom to bang out the sexual tension,” Alice nodded.

“Oh no,” Lily said with dawning horror.

“What? What is it?” Remus asked.

“They’re both gonna be freaking out about this to me and James,” Lily replied.

“Actually, Marly will come to me too,” Sirius chimed in.

“Not actually that helpful, you whore,” Lily said. “God, I can hear it now. “‘Dorcas looked so hot in that blazer, and I think she may have been flirting with me?’ As though they weren’t flirting back and forth for most of the date.”

“Oh no, Dorcas is gonna be a monster,” James groaned.

“At least you don’t have to deal with both of them,” Lily muttered.

“I don’t think I have that kind of strength. You’re an inspiration, Evans,” James said, eyes twinkling with mirth.

“Oh shut up. I can’t believe I have to pretend to like you,” Lily scoffed, shoving at his shoulders.

“Uh, guys? I think they should be here any minute,” Frank said.

“Alright. We’ll discuss this tomorrow. Everyone up to their dorms,” Lily commanded. The Gryffindors scattered as they obeyed her order.

Five minutes later, just as Lily, Alice, and Mary hopped into their beds, Dorcas and Marlene walked into the dorm giggling. 

“Hey guys, how were your dates?” Lily asked, trying to sound innocent.

“Actually, nonexistent,” Marlene said.

“Yeah, I think you and James got something mixed up, because we ended up on a date together,” Dorcas said. 

“But it was fun, and it was good food too,” Marlene continued. “So the question becomes this: How, if all you and James were doing together was planning our dates, did you manage to screw up so bad?” 

“There is… a slight possibility…” Lily closed her eyes in defeat at Marlene’s raised eyebrows and Dorcas’s smirk. “That I was a little distracted.”

“I knew it!” Marlene shouted. “I knew you two were hooking up!”

“What?” Alice said, playing at being surprised. Mary had actually fallen asleep somehow.

“No! We are not hooking up!” Lily cried. “We were just hanging out. And there may have possibly been the tiniest bit of flirty banter, but that’s normal between friends, right?” She was playing the part of denial well, but she was concerned that her friends would catch on if she didn’t protest enough.

“Uh huh. Sure,” Marlene said, drawing out the r to make it sound impossibly suggestive. “Anyway, Lily’s new boy-toy aside, I’m pretty tired. I’m headed to bed.”

“Yeah, same,” Dorcas said, trying to hide a yawn with her hand.

“You two could have come back earlier,” Lily pointed out.

“And miss out on a date with a beautiful girl? Never,” Marlene replied, winking.

“I thought you said your dates never showed?” Lily asked.

“Oh, we weren’t referring to them,” Dorcas answered, grinning at Marlene.

“Ok then, nerds. Goodnight,” Lily said, internally pumping her fist and leaping in joy.

“Goodnight, Lily.”

“Night, babe.”

That night, neither Dorcas or Marlene would admit it, but they dreamt of each other. 

Lily’s dreams were far less peaceful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look, I know a magical eavesdropping charm is dumb. But I'm not changing it because why does magic exist if not to provide slightly easier solutions to problems? And is that a bit of possible plot sneaking into the chapter in the very last line? I was surprised too. This does have an actual plot. I feel the need to say that because I keep writing fluff, but it does have a plot, I swear. If you enjoyed, leave a comment and a kudos, I really love getting those. If you didn't enjoy, tell me what to improve on! Constructive criticism is always welcome. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed!


	14. Mortem itineribus in

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> trigger warning: graphic description of a dead body. If you want to skip it, just scroll past the scene starting at 'the next sound she heard was a scream and ending at 'this is all sorts of fucked up'.

Lily was walking through the castle. It was dark, the pale moon shining as she floated through the empty halls. She couldn’t quite remember why she was walking, or where she was going, but her feet seemed to know the way, so she relaxed and continued forwards, never paying mind to the sudden eeriness of the usually homey castle.

Lily smiled as she suddenly recognized where she was going. The path she was on would lead her directly to the Great Hall. She wasn’t quite sure why she was excited by that, but she was. The smile remained on her face as she entered the hall, despite her sudden need to scream.

The Great Hall was filled with bodies. Classmates, friends, all covered in blood. Pale and cold to the touch. And a warning, a message on the wall, meant for the apparent only survivor.

Mortem itineribus in.

Written in blood, above the countless bodies, the message was an obvious threat. Lily surveyed the scene with mounting horror, bile rising in her throat as the blood seemed to flow down the wall and through the room, snaking towards her.

And yet the unholy grin never left her face as she drowned in it, teeth stained crimson as she tried to scream.

 

——————————————————————————————

 

Lily woke with a scream. Marlene, Alice, Dorcas, and Mary all jumped back from where they were crowded around her bed.

“Lily, babe, are you alright?” Marlene said, jumping up and rushing to Lily’s side. Lily blindly fumbled until she had a hold on Marlene’s wrist.

“Yeah, I just…. I had a really vivid nightmare.” Lily whispered, shaking slightly.

“Do you want to tell us, or would you rather keep it to yourself?” Dorcas asked kindly. 

“Uh, fuck what she wants. If she woke up screaming, she’s telling us,” Alice said.

“Don’t force her to do something that makes her uncomfortable,” Mary shot back.

“Hey, peanut gallery? Could you maybe shut up for a minute? Thanks,” Marlene said, still at Lily’s side. “You wanna tell us what happened, Lils?”

“I… yeah, sure. I was walking through the halls at night, and they were empty, and it was really creepy but I didn’t stop. I was walking towards the Great Hall, and when I went in…” Lily trailed off, gripping Marlene’s wrist tightly.

“Go on,” Mary prompted softly.

“When I walked in, everyone was dead. There were bodies everywhere, covered in blood. And there was writing on the wall, in blood. I can’t quite remember what it said. It slid off the wall and I drowned in it.” Lily shuddered. “And throughout the whole thing, I couldn’t stop smiling. I wanted to, I wanted to scream, to cry, but I couldn’t stop smiling.”

“Well that’s fucked up,” Alice said. The girls all glared at her. “What? It’s true.”

Lily laughed. “Yeah, you’re not wrong. It’s ok, I’m alright, it was only a dream.”

“Yeah,” Marlene replied. “Only a dream.”

“Alright, well, as fun as this has been, it’s 3 am and we have classes tomorrow, so I’m gonna get some sleep,” Dorcas said. “Goodnight, everyone. And Lily, if you have a nightmare again, just tell us, alright? Madam Pomfrey likes me, I can probably get some of that dreamless sleep potion for you.”

“Thanks, Cas, but I’m alright,” Lily replied. “I’m just gonna try and go back to sleep.”

Everyone nodded and said goodnight, yawning and climbing back into their beds. Except for Marlene, who still sat at Lily’s side with sad eyes. 

“You’re not gonna let this go, are you?” Lily asked softly.

“Not really, no.” Marlene whispered back. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“Yeah, just… could you stay here? Just for tonight?” Lily asked hesitantly. Marlene grinned in response. 

“Do you wanna be big spoon or little spoon?”

“Little spoon,” Lily sighed, feeling relief as Marlene slid into bed behind her and pulled her closer.

“I’ve got you, Lils. Always,” Marlene said quietly. Lily hummed happily and began to drift off, feeling safe despite the nagging voice the back of her mind that whispered warnings: nobody would be safe again.

 

——————————————————————————————

 

“Wake up, nerds,” Alice shouted, ripping the blankets off of Lily and Marlene.

“No. Away, foul creature. Nasty beast of unfathomable horror, we banish you from this haven,” Lily replied. Marlene just groaned and curled closer. Lily absent-mindedly traced patterns on Marlene’s arm, which was thrown haphazardly over her waist.

“Aw, you two are so fucking gay. Did you sleep together?” Alice jokingly asked.

“A lady doesn’t kiss and tell,” Marlene teased as Lily flipped Alice off.

“Did who sleep with who now?” Dorcas asked. She froze upon seeing Lily and Marlene in bed together.

“No one slept with anyone. Marlene is like a living space heater, so occasionally I force her to cuddle me for warmth and comfort,” Lily responded. 

“Also her bed is nicer than mine,” Marlene said. 

“Cuz I didn’t set mine on fire in third year.”

“Bitch, that was Alice’s fault and you know it,” Marlene replied, hitting Lily with a pillow.

“As relieved as I am to hear that you two didn’t get it on with the rest of us in the same room, we have to get to the Great Hall soon,” Dorcas said. “The house-elves told me that there would be raspberry scones, but Sirius will eat them all if I don’t get there first.”

“Alright, don’t get your knickers in a twist, we’re coming,” Lily grumbled, rolling out of the bed. Marlene sprawled out across the empty space, only getting up when Alice hit her with a pillow. Mary snickered from her seat at her desk.

The girls found the Marauders sitting in the common room. An unusual sight, especially because of Sirius and Dorcas’ unspoken scone rivalry, which somehow everyone was aware of without ever realizing they were aware of it. James stood up as the girls walked into the room.

“Hey, are you guys alright?” He asked. “We heard a scream from your room last night.”

“Oh, yeah, we’re fine, I just had a nightmare is all,” Lily answered. 

“You alright then?” James asked, eyebrows furrowed in concern. 

“Yeah, I’m fine,” Lily replied, smiling warmly at James, who grinned in response. “And hey, Christmas break is coming up in a week. What’s everyone doing?” 

“I’ll be at the Potters’ place,” Sirius replied as the group walked out of the common room and towards the Great Hall. 

“Yeah, same here,” Peter said. “Well, I’m going to my parents for the first few days, but then I’m headed over there.”

“Yeah, same as Pete,” Remus responded.

“Frank and I are doing the whole meet the parents thing, so that should be fun. Besides that, nothing’s happening for me,” Alice said. 

“I’m just headed home,” Mary chimed in. 

“I, uh, I don’t know. I don’t exactly have a home to go to,” Marlene said slowly.

“Sure you do,” Sirius replied casually. “The Potters are known for taking in gay strays, I’m sure they’ve got room for one more. The house is bloody huge.”

“I don’t know,” Marlene said. “I don’t want to be a burden. Plus, Christmas is a time for family, so I’m sure they won’t want me there-“

"Of course they bloody do," Sirius replied. "They're Euphemia and Fleamont Potter, they don't know how to not want more children around."

Marlene laughed. “Yeah, alright. That cool with you, James?”

“Are you kidding? Mum’s been telling me to invite you for two weeks, I just hadn’t got around to it yet,” James grinned. 

“You sure?” Marlene asked.

“Hell yeah. Actually, we’re gonna be throwing a big Christmas party. Can you guys all make it? It’s the night of Christmas, so you can spend the morning with your family and then just come on by Floo or something.”

“Yeah, I’ll need something to keep me from going mad throughout the holidays,” Lily said. 

“Why would you go mad?” Dorcas asked.

“Petunia,” Sirius answered for Lily, who just groaned in response.

“Oh right. Sorry Lils,” Doras said. “That can’t be fun.”

“It’s not. But at least now I have something to look forward to,” Lily said as they entered the Great Hall. 

The next sound she heard was a scream.

 

——————————————————————————————

 

“What the fuck?” Lily cried at the sight that greeted them.

A girl was hanging from the ceiling, a noose around her neck. She was covered in blood, which dripped slowly down to the floor far below. The girl couldn’t have been more than twelve.

“I’m gonna be sick,” Mary gasped, sitting down heavily. Pete knelt beside her, hugging her tightly.

“Hey! Help! Someone help! A girl is dead!” Dorcas shouted into the hallway.

“Hold on, I’ll go get the professors,” Remus said, running off. Sirius followed him.

“Guys… look,” Lily said, pointing behind the gruesome image. There, on the wall just behind the professors’ table, was a message. Written in blood.

Mortem itineribus in.

“That was in my dream,” Lily whispered incredulously. 

“What?” Marlene asked.

“That phrase, that was what was written on the wall in my dream.”

“Death marches on,” James exhaled shakily.

“What?” Dorcas asked.

“It’s latin. It translates, roughly, to death marches on.” He shook his head, sitting down and resting his head on his hands.

“Ok, wait, so you had a dream about dead people in the Great Hall with that phrase written on the wall, and now there’s a dead person in the Great Hall with that phrase written on the wall?” Marlene asked skeptically. “That’s…”

“Batshit crazy.” Dorcas finished her sentence. “This is fucking insane.”

“You think I don’t realize that?” Lily asked. “But I swear it’s true.”

“We believe you babe, it’s just scary as shit,” Marlene replied, wrapping an arm around Dorcas, who leaned into the touch.

“Move, move please,” McGonagall’s voice rang through the halls. “Everyone back to your dormitories, breakfast will be late this morning. Out of the way.”

“Professor,” Mary rasped out as McGonagall entered. “We don’t know what happened-“

“I understand,” McGonagall said, quickly but not unkindly. “Pettigrew, get her to the hospital wing, ask Poppy to give her something for shock.”

“Yeah, of course,” Peter responded. He coaxed Mary to her feet and led her away.

“Miss Evans, Mr. Potter, what happened here?” McGonagall asked, waving her wand, which untied the rope and brought the girl’s body floating down gently to land on a table that McGonagall conjured quickly.

“Well, we were coming in early for breakfast because Sirius wanted to get to the scones before Dorcas, and when we walked in she was there. No one else was here, and we didn’t touch or move anything,” James quickly said. 

“Alright. Death marches on?” McGonagall said, seemingly thinking aloud. “I haven’t heard that one before…”

“Professor, is there anything we can do?” Dorcas asked, still leaning against Marlene.

“Go back to your dormitories. The Heads of Houses will address their students later. Classes are cancelled,” McGonagall said as she turned to the girl’s body. She had a Hufflepuff tie on, and was wearing pink tennis shoes under her robes. Lily wasn’t quite sure why, but the image of the shoes turning from pink to red as the blood dripped down haunted her more than anything.

 

——————————————————————————————

 

“This is all sorts of fucked up,” Frank said. He had slept through the event, but the rest of the grouped filled him in. They were all now gathered in the boy’s dorm, with the exception of Peter and Mary, waiting for news.

“Yeah,” Sirius agreed.

“You’re sure that was the phrase you saw in your dream? You said you didn’t remember it,” Alice said from her spot next to Frank on his bed.

“Yeah, I’m sure,” Lily replied. “I didn’t realize until I saw it, but that was it.”

“Ok. So how did you have a dream about what was gonna happen before it happened?” Remus asked.

“I don’t know. It’s never happened before,” Lily answered.

“Ok. Look, is it weird that Lily had that dream? Yes, but it’s not like she knew it would come true in any way. No one knew.” James paced around the room, running a hand through his hair. For a split second Lily felt the wild urge to pull him down to sit next to her and fix his hair, but she quickly dismissed the thought.

“Yeah. No one knew it was gonna happen except for the people that did it,” Dorcas said quietly.

“What?” Marlene asked. Dorcas had been silent the whole time, sitting close to Marlene and choosing to fiddle with the necklace she had on rather than join in the conversation about the murder.

“Someone just murdered a student. Brutally. And we know the Death Eaters are recruiting in Hogwarts. And the message was death marches on. How much more obvious can it get? The people responsible for the Hogsmeade attack probably have something to do with this as well,” Dorcas said, getting louder as she continued to speak.

“Yeah, that’s a solid point,” Sirius chimed in. “Especially since the girl was a Hufflepuff. Aren’t Hufflepuffs known for tolerance?”

“You think she was targeted?” Frank asked, horror evident in his tone.

“No, I think it was a threat. ‘Don’t fuck with us because none of you are safe, not even here’, that kind of thing. Like how Mum used to leave bloody knives on my pillow right next to my face to mess with me,” Sirius replied.

“Ok, wait, what the fuck?” Marlene asked.

“Yeah, she was seventy kinds of screwed up,” Sirius responded casually, though he shifted closer to Remus, unconsciously seeking comfort.

“Wait, guys, I think Minnie’s here!” James said.

The group ran down the stairs and into the common room. Sure enough, McGonagall was standing in front of the fireplace with Gryffindors gathered all around, clearly whispering and wondering what was happening.

“Quiet,” McGonagall’s voice rang out over the crowd. A hush fell. “Earlier this morning, a girl was murdered. Her body was found in the Great Hall. We do not currently know who killed her. If you have any information about this event, come forward.”

The Gryffindors began eyeing one another, whispering suspiciously. Despite the susurration, not a single student came forward. Lily didn’t expect them to. If Dorcas’ theory was correct, than it was most likely someone who hung around with Mulciber and his friends, and no one in Gryffindor liked that group.

“Alright. Classes are cancelled for the day. It is recommended you stay inside your dormitories, and if you wish to go anywhere an older student must accompany you if you are below your fifth year.” McGonagall began to leave.

“Wait! Professor!” Lily found herself crying out. Everyone turned to look at her as McGonagall stopped.

“Yes, Miss Evans?”

“What was the girl’s name?” Lily asked quietly. The other students looked at McGonagall, listening carefully.

“Winnie. Winnie Shacklebolt,” McGonagall answered quietly as she left.

“What?” A fifth year boy asked horrifiedly.

“Kingsley,” the boy sitting next to him said, grabbing his arm. “Kingsley, I-“

The boy shook his head and tore his arm out of his friend’s grip, and ran out of the room after McGonagall.

After that everyone was quiet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, thanks for reading! I know that was a short chapter, but I wanted to get it out before Christmas. Speaking of, merry christmas to all who celebrate it, and happy holidays to everyone who celebrates something else! I hope you enjoyed that chapter. I'm gonna be (finally) getting into the plot, but don't worry, there will still be copious amounts of fluff. Thanks for reading, and leave a kudos and comment if you enjoyed because I love hearing about what you think!


	15. The Christmas Party

Dear Lily,

Have you been driven mad by Petunia yet? The tragedy at school and then coming home to that does not make a stable mind. Take care of yourself, babe, even if that means escaping and running away into the city. Oh wait, you live in the middle of nowhere and there isn’t a city. Never mind, you brought this on yourself.

The Potters are really nice. Soon as I got here they told me that I was welcome anytime and that they were happy to have me. And Sirius wasn’t kidding, the house is huge. My room is the size of my old kitchen. Plus, they’ve got quidditch hoops in the backyard! How great is that? I don’t have to stop training over the break!

Cas came over yesterday, early in the morning. I thought she was looking for James but she said she was looking for me. She was looking for me, Lily! We ended up hanging out for awhile while everyone else was still asleep. We climbed on top of the broom shed and watched the sunrise and have you seen Cas when the sun is rising and the light is soft and everything is quiet and all you can hear is her laughing at a joke and all you can see is her eyes becoming gold in the light? I’m fully aware that was grossly sappy but I’m not starting this whole letter over, so suffer through my gay crisis with me.

All my love,  
Marlene

——————————————————————————————

Dear Marlene, 

Petunia’s not really around much, she’s got this new boyfriend she’s spending time with. He looks like a walrus. You’d hate him. 

No, my real problem is Snape. He keeps coming around and trying to get me to talk to him. He’s not even apologizing for his blatant racism, and it’s getting creepier and creepier. I might ask my parents if I can stay with you and James until the end of the break after the Christmas party. 

In regards to your gay crisis: what the fuck that’s so gay. Like sweet mother of Merlin, Marly, that shit is the gayest. Ask her out, kiss her, sleep with her, alleviate the tension somehow. Christ you’re useless. 

Only some of my love because I don’t care that much,  
Lily

——————————————————————————————

Dear Evans,

Marly told me about you maybe asking your parents to stay here for awhile. My parents are cool with it, so if you get the go ahead from yours it’s all fine. 

Did Cas tell you about her gay-ass sunrise date with Marlene? I swear to god, we’ll all be old and grey before they get together. I had to hear about it twice from the two of them, and I won’t survive this much longer. I’m in desperate need of back-up. The mix-up date didn’t work, so what will? I mean, christ, what’s it gonna take? 

On another topic: Marlene told me about Snape. I know I’m probably the last person you want to hear about this from, especially because of last year. I really am sorry about that. Anyway, if you’re willing to take my advice, might I suggest using a protection spell? There’s one I know of where you can specify exactly who you don’t want within the borders of the spell. Granted, you’d have to get an adult to do it, but since he can’t even use magic he wouldn’t be able to get around it.

Hope you’re excited for Christmas,  
James

——————————————————————————————

Dear Potter,

My parents agreed to let me stay over. I’ll probably just bring a bag over when I show up for the party? Is that ok?

Marly told me about the sunrise date. They’re so useless. What’s the next plan we had? Gryffindor Scores And So Does Dorcas? If the mix-up date didn’t work, maybe we just move on to that? 

As for the Snape thing: I don’t mind you giving me advice. It was actually a good idea. I just, I miss the person who I thought he was, you know? He used to be sweet, and smart, and he didn’t really like other people but that made me feel special. I also thought he was one of the few guy friends I had who wasn’t just being nice to get in my pants, but I guess I was wrong about that. Have you ever believed the best in someone and found out you were wrong? Is it always that painful?

Sincerely, (god, what kind of ending is that?)  
Lily

——————————————————————————————

Dear Evans, 

Yeah, you just bringing your stuff when you show up to the party is fine. And as for the believing in someone thing, yeah. I’ve believed that someone would never hurt someone else except in self-defense, and I was wrong. But it was a one-time thing, and he’s been trying harder and doing better ever since. He was having a rough go of it at the time, and he didn’t really mean any harm, but it was seriously bad and could have screwed over a lot of people that deserved better. Not really the same situation, but similar, I guess? The difference is this guy has been trying to redeem himself ever since, whereas Snape has been stalking you. Don’t be afraid to hit him, Evans, you and I both know you’ve got a mean right-hook.

Sincerely, (it’s not so bad of an ending)  
James

——————————————————————————————

Finally, Christmas Day arrived. It was quiet in the Evans’ household. They opened presents together in the morning. Lily laughed quietly at the face Petunia made at the horrendous scarf Lily had bought her. Petunia got Lily a pair of socks and a pencil. Lily couldn’t quite tell exactly how spiteful Petunia was feeling when she bought it, but it broke the second Lily tried to use it.

Their parents, as always, were quiet and oblivious. Lily’s dad went outside to smoke a cigar and read the paper, and her mum went to start cooking dinner for later that night. Apparently, Vernon and his family were coming over. Lily couldn’t articulate how excited she was that she would be gone before they arrived. 

The Potters were coming at three to bring her to their house, so Lily began to pack her things. Mostly clothes, but she also brought along a few records and a camera. She had every intention of getting photographic evidence of Dorcas and Marlene flirting so that the next time one of them was insecure about losing the other she could smack them in the face with it.

Lily hummed to herself as she packed, looking around to see if there was anything she needed that she had forgotten. That was when she heard a strange sound, like something hit her window. Then it happened again.

Lily grabbed her wand and crept slowly towards the window. She flung the curtains back and looked out.

Severus Snape was outside, throwing rocks at her window. 

——————————————————————————————

“What the bloody hell do you think you’re doing?” Lily said as she marched towards Snape.

“I had to get your attention somehow,” he replied. He looked remorseful, but Lily could see past that now. 

“Yeah, well next time take the hint that I don’t want to see you. Leave. Now.” Lily’s tone left no room for argument, but Snape tried anyway.

“Lily, are we really going to let a little difference of opinion destroy our friendship forever-“

“Am I going to let a little thing like bigotry and racism destroy our friendship, hmmm, what a question, let me think. Yes, I absolutely am. Get away and stay away, Snape. We’re done.” Lily turned and began to walk away.

“Lily, I’m the only one that can keep you safe,” Snape called after her. 

“From what? Your Death Eater pals? No thanks, I can protect myself,” Lily replied.

“You think death will stop its march for you? Grow up, Lily.”

Lily stopped and turned around slowly. “What did you just say?”

Snape smiled in a way that Lily supposed he thought was charming. “ I said you need to grow up. I can protect you, you’ll be safe-“

“Death’s march? That sounds really familiar for some reason. Tell me, Snape, why was that the phrase you used?”

“Lily-“

“I wonder where I’ve heard it before. Oh right, I didn’t hear it, I saw it written in latin with a little girl’s blood. But I guess you don’t care because her blood wasn’t pure, huh?” Lily’s hands were balled into fists, her knuckles turning white as she held herself back. 

“Lily, please, you can’t think I had something to do with that?” Snape pleaded.

“I don’t know, Snape. I very clearly never knew you at all. Get off my property, and if you try to talk to me again, I don’t care if I get expelled, I’ll hex you so hard you won’t be able to walk in a straight line for a month,” Lily threatened.

“Fine. But just know that no matter what I’ll care for you. Always,” Snape said. 

“That’s creepy as shit!” Lily called over her shoulder as she walked inside, slamming the door for good measure.

Lily leaned back against the door, running a hand through her hair. She glanced at the clock, straightening up when she saw the time. It was 1:45, and the Potters would be there any second. 

——————————————————————————————

Lily was pacing in the living room, her suitcase on the couch. The clock now read 1:54.

“Do you think you might be a little too nervous about this?” Lily’s father asked from his armchair, barely looking up from his book.

“I’m not nervous. I’m excited,” Lily replied. 

“Then why the pacing?”

“Maybe she’s worried about sleeping with him.” Petunia walked down the stairs, throwing a nasty look at Lily.

“What? Lily, are you-“ her dad began to stand up, indignant and upset. 

“No, Dad!” Lily said, glaring at Petunia. “James and I are just friends. I’m only friends with everyone there. You would know if I was seeing someone, and I’m sixteen, I’m not sleeping with anyone.”

“Alright then, be sure to keep it that way,” he said, returning to his book. Petunia left in a huff, obviously upset that her attempts to mess with Lily’s plans had failed.

Just then, the doorbell rang. Lily practically ran to get the door.

“James,” she said, tackling him into a hug.

“Hey there, Evans,” James laughed, hugging her back. “And here I thought you hated me.”

“I am so excited to be out of here,” Lily said.

“Damn, babe, ignoring me to jump Potter? That’s low.” Marlene appeared behind James, alongside a woman Lily assumed was James’ mother.

“Marly!” Lily grabbed Marlene and hugged her too.

“Petunia trying to drive you crazy?” Marlene whispered in Lily’s ear.

“No, but Snape is,” Lily replied. Marlene squeezed her a bit tighter. 

“Ready to head out?” The woman standing nearby asked.

“Yes ma’am,” Lily answered. 

“Oh, none of that,” she laughed. “Call me Euphemia, darling, ma’am makes me feel old, and I don’t need anything else doing that.”

“Alright. Let me just go grab my things and say goodbye to my parents,” Lily said. 

“Ooh, can I come? I miss Mrs. Evans, she always gave me sweets for Christmas,” Marlene said.

“Yeah, alright, come on,” Lily replied, heading inside. “Mum, Dad, I’m leaving now!”

“Wait, let me hug you,” Lily’s mother called. Lily walked into the kitchen.

“Alright, darling, stay safe and be sweet, alright?” Her mum paused her cooking to wrap her arms around Lily. 

“I’ll make sure she is, Mrs. Evans.“ Marlene bounced into the kitchen.

“Oh, Marlene! How lovely to see you, I have something for you here.” Mrs. Evans walked into the pantry, rummaging around for a bit before coming out with a bag of sweets, handing them to Marlene.

“Thanks Mrs. Evans,” Marlene said cheerfully, hugging the woman before grabbing Lily’s suitcase. “I think we’re headed off, Lils, so I’m gonna bring this out for you.”

“Thanks babe,” Lily responded. “Bye Mum!”

“Bye Lily! Have fun!”

“Got everything then?” Euphemia asked as Lily shut the front door behind her.

“Yes ma’am,” Lily answered. 

“Again, dear, just call me Euphemia. And do hold on tight,” Euphemia said. Lily took hold of her arm with Marlene and James, and in a flash, they Disapparated. 

——————————————————————————————

They landed in the parlor of James’ house. Lily, the second her head stopped spinning, looked around in wonder. The room was probably bigger than her living room and kitchen combined, and it was certainly nicer.

“C’mon, your room is right next to mine,” Marlene said. “Everyone is showing up for the party around 5, but Sirius, Remus, and Cas are here now.”

“Good,” Lily said. “Because I have something to tell you guys, and I don’t think you’re gonna like it.”

“Not gonna like what?” James asked, walking up to them with Lily’s suitcase.

“Lily has news,” Marlene replied. “Let’s get your stuff in your room and you can tell us there.”

It took few minutes to get to Lily’s room. The Potters’ house was huge, and with all the twists and turns Lily knew she was definitely going to get lost.

They arrived in a long hallway, on the second floor of the house. Marlene pointed at a door on the right. “That one’s mine, the one on the left is yours.”

Lily walked in. The room was simple and spacious. There was a bed with a deep blue comforter, a dresser on the adjacent wall next to what Lily assumed was the bathroom door, a small table with chairs, and a bookcase. There was another door on the opposite wall to the bed.

“Yeah, you get your own balcony,” James said. “The sun will be in your eyes when you wake up though. Sorry if that’s an issue.”

“No, James, this is perfect.” Lily smiled at him for a few seconds before sobering. “But I really do need to tell you guys something.”

“Yeah, let me just get the others,” James responded, leaving to find Sirius, Remus, and Dorcas.

“Snape?” Marlene asked gravely. Lily nodded, moving to sit on the bed. Marlene sat beside her. Lily reached for her wrist.

“Remember when you first started doing that?” Marlene asked with a small grin. 

“Yeah,” Lily laughed. “To be fair, it still is comforting.”

“Yeah but how many people develop a habit because they needed to break out of an existential despair?”

“That’s how I’ve formed most of my habits,” Sirius said as he walked in. “But what habit does Lily have?”

“Holding on to Marlene’s wrist to check her pulse,” Dorcas answered for Lily as she entered, Remus and James following closely behind her. “Lily went into a spiral sometime in fourth year, talking about how maybe nothing exists and we’re not real. She was up until like two a.m. talking about it until Marlene grabbed her, put her hand on her wrist, and asked if Lily could feel her pulse.”

“When I said yes, you asked if that meant you were alive, and when I said yeah, you said that if you’re alive, you must exist,” Lily reminisced, looking at Marlene. “Ever since then, when I’m losing it, I grab your wrist and check your pulse.”

“You guys are sappy today. Did someone die?” Marlene asked.

“Welp, there it is. Moment officially ruined,” Remus said. “I knew it would be either Marlene or Sirius.”

“Shut up,” Sirius said. “I thought we were here because Lily has gossip?”

“I do, but you’re not gonna like it,” Lily replied. “It starts with rocks hitting my window…”

——————————————————————————————

“Damn,” Remus said after Lily relayed the story to them. “You want me to set up a protection spell? I’m a legal adult in the wizarding world now, I totally could.”

“That might be nice,” Lily responded.

“Are you sure he mentioned death marching and all that shit?” Sirius asked.

“Yep,” Lily said. “Which means he had to be involved, right?”

“Well, yeah, that’s a good theory, but it could be that he just heard it from the people who did it and thought it was ominous and dramatic enough for him to use it,” James mused. 

“Since when do you think Snivellus is innocent? Sirius asked.

“We have to give benefit of the doubt,” James replied coolly. “He may be a bigot, but that doesn’t automatically make him a murderer.”

“He’s using the murderer’s catchphrase though,” Remus said. 

“Yeah, but James is right, he may have just heard it and decided it sounded just right, the dramatic evil git,” Marlene replied. “Innocent until proven guilty, but maybe we start trying to prove he’s guilty.”

“Yeah. Nothing we can do without proof,” Sirius said.

Everyone fell silent, contemplating the situation. The mood darkened considerably. It was James who noticed this.

“Hey!” He said loudly, startling Sirius enough that he almost fell off of Remus’ lap where he was perched. “We have a party to got to. Lighten up, everyone, it’s the holidays! We’re free from schoolwork and we have a party to get to!”

“Yeah,” Lily responded, snapping out of her thoughts. “C’mon, guys, let’s get ready. Alice, Frank, Mary, and Peter will be here soon, along with the rest of the guests. Let’s get ready.”

“Alright,” Marlene said. “Nothing like good Potter house party. James, you take the boys to get ready. No, Remus, you can’t just wear a sweater vest,” she sighed when Remus raised his hand to speak. James and Sirius snickered as he lowered his hand, pouting.

“Alright,” James said as he got up and herded the other boys out. “See you all in a bit. And remember, it’s a nice party, but you don’t have to dress that fancy. Just nice.”

“Too bad, we’re gonna look fantastic,” Dorcas replied. “And you can be sure about that.”

——————————————————————————————

“Are you sure about this?” Lily asked, looking at herself in the mirror. She was wearing a simple black dress that hugged her curves and flared out to end just above her knees. She liked the way she looked, but she wasn’t sure it was quite nice enough for the party.

“Yeah, Lils, you look great. Your boy is gonna be drooling all over you,” Dorcas answered.

“Thanks, I really hope Remus will like it,” Lily joked.

“Funny, aren’t you? But she’s right, James will be tripping over his own feet when he sees you. And you can’t hide behind sarcasm anymore, you admitted to liking him,” Marlene called from inside the bathroom.

“I may have a tiny crush on him, but that’s it and I’ll get over it,” Lily said. She wasn’t really a fan of pretending to like James, but at least it was easier now that they were friends. And she could do worse, she thought to herself. Potter was kind, funny, and not exactly awful-looking.

“No you won’t. Because Cas and I are going to get you two together,” Marlene said as she exited the bathroom.

“Oh my god,” Dorcas breathed out as she saw Marlene.

“What, are you in awe of my planning skills?” Marlene teased.

“No, I just…” Dorcas huffed out a small laugh at her own stuttering. “God, Marls, you’re gorgeous.”

“You think?” Marlene asked, ducking her head but keeping her eyes on Dorcas. She was wearing a deep blue dress that matched her eyes, simple but it seemed glamorous when worn with the confidence Marlene had. The outfit was completed with a silver necklace with a pendant shaped like two gears fitting together.

“Yeah, I do,” Dorcas replied, unable to take her eyes off Marlene. Which was fortunate, because neither girl noticed Lily taking pictures of them.

“You don’t look so bad yourself, Cas,” Marlene said. Dorcas was wearing a red dress that complimented her dark skin perfectly. It was longer than the other two, ending at the middle of her calf. The matching red heels meant that Dorcas was finally as tall as Marlene, but even at eye level, the two weren’t making eye contact, but in fact staring at each other’s lips.

Lily tried to quietly sneak out of the room so as not to interrupt the moment, but unfortunately, Marlene noticed.

“And where do you think you’re going, young lady?” 

“Trying to sneak out so I could avoid you so you couldn’t set me up with Potter?” Lily tried. 

“Oh no, you’re not avoiding this,” Dorcas responded. “We’re getting you your man, Lily.”

“Goddamnit,” Lily said, trying to play the role she had to. 

But really, she was forming a plan. Christmas decorations always included mistletoe, right?

——————————————————————————————

The party was in full swing by the time the girls walked down the stairs.

“I’m gonna go find the guys,” Lily said.

“Alright. We’re gonna go get some drinks or something,” Marlene replied, tugging Dorcas away and into the crowd.

“Excellent,” Lily said to herself. “It’s all going to plan.” She laughed to herself evilly before realizing that she looked like a dumbass and went to find James.

She wandered around for awhile looking for him before she found him small-talking with some Ministry official.

“Oh, Lily. Wow, you look… incredible,” James said as she approached. Lily blushed a bit. Why the hell am I blushing, she thought to herself.

“Thanks. Look, there’s been a new development in the plan,” Lily responded.

“Oh, really? I’m sorry, Martin, this is something I’ve got to take care of. Rain check on that lunch meeting?” James said, not waiting for a response before walking away, pulling lily along with him. 

“Who was that guy?” Lily asked. 

James chuckled. “That was Martin, he’s a secretary for the auror office at the Ministry. He wants me to ask my dad to give him a raise.”

“He told you that?” Lily asked.

“No, but I’ve learned to read between the lines,” James replied. “Now what’s happening with Dorlene?”

“They just had a big gay moment over seeing each other all dressed up. Do you have mistletoe anywhere?” Lily asked as they entered the kitchen, which was mercifully empty.

“I’m not surprised. Uh, I think we have mistletoe hanging in some doorways. Why?” James asked as Lily hopped up to sit on the counter, which actually brought her to the same height as James. Lily hadn’t noticed how tall he was before. 

“Because I’m going to get Dorcas and Marlene under the mistletoe so they have to kiss,” Lily explained, pushing away thoughts of how tall James was. 

“Oh, that’s actually really simple. Why didn’t I think of that?” James grinned. “I think there’s some hanging in the doorway of the ballroom.”

“There’s a ballroom?” Lily asked in awe. “Wait, never mind, not the point. You head over there, I’m gonna find them and bring them there.”

“Got it.” James said. “Where are they now?”

“They said they were getting drinks,” Lily replied.

“Ok, then they’re near the ballroom already. Just g back to the parlor and head to the right, you’ll find them and then just keep heading right.”

“Got it,” Lily said, already halfway out the door.

——————————————————————————————

Lily was in the parlor when everything went to shit. 

“Lily!” She heard a voice call. She turned around. 

“Alice!” She said, going to hug her friend.

“Hey, you look good. Trying to impress someone?” Alice asked.

“Trying to get Dorlene together actually,” Lily replied.

“Oh cool. Can we help?” Frank asked as Lily hugged him too.

“Actually I think I got this. You guys go have fun,” Lily said. 

“Oh we will.” Alice winked.

“Not that kind of fun,” Lily groaned as the couple left. She turned around to head to the ballroom when she noticed a strange figure in the corner, a man seemingly hunched over and muttering.

“Er, excuse me?” Lily called. The figure ignored her. “Are you alright?”

The man whipped around and pulled out a wand.

And that was the last thing Lily remembered before waking up outside, the Potters’ house on fire before her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm sorry it's been so long since I updated, life got really busy really quick. I hope this chapter makes up for it, I've been working through writer's block but I hope it's good. Thanks for reading, and if you enjoyed, please leave a kudos and a comment, they're really encouraging! If you think I need to improve on something, tell me how! Hope you enjoyed!


	16. We Can't Have One Nice Thing, Huh?

Marlene and Dorcas

 

“So, drinks?” Dorcas asked as Marlene tugged her forwards. She tried not to blush as she looked at Marlene’s hand clutching her own.

“Drinks,” Marlene said decisively. “If I’m gonna deal with Lily and James dancing around talking about their feelings all night, there’s no way I’m staying sober.”

Dorcas laughed and allowed herself to be led through the throngs of people. She wasn’t sure if Marlene noticed, but all the eyes seemed to be on them. Well, not on them, but on Marlene. As she passed by, it seemed nobody could stop themselves from looking at her appreciatively. Dorcas didn’t like this in the slightest, slowing her pace as she glared.

“Cas?” Marlene asked when Dorcas slowed. “You ok?”

“Oh, uh, yeah,” Dorcas stammered. She was hoping Marlene wouldn’t notice her sudden shift of mood. “Actually, my hand kinda hurts,” she chuckled, wringing her hand when Marlene let go of it.

“Oh, I’m so sorry, it’s just so crowded and I didn’t want to lose you. Here, come on, the drinks are in the next room, we just have to make it through this crowd.”

This time, as the girls set off, Marlene placed a guiding hand on Dorcas’s lower back, keeping her close to her side. This time, whenever someone began to look at Marlene, they looked away as soon as they noticed Dorcas beside her.

‘Good,’ Dorcas thought triumphantly. ‘Now they know she’s mine.’ Dorcas startled herself at the thought. She knew Marlene wasn’t hers, and her own possessive behavior scared her a bit. 

‘Marlene belongs to herself. Cut that shit out, Meadowes,’ she berated herself.

“Cas? What’s up? You seem a little preoccupied,” Marlene said. 

“Oh, I’m just… thinking about what Lily told us,” Dorcas replied, unwilling to even hint at her true thoughts, which remained on the girl beside her. 

“Hey, don’t worry about that.” Marlene pulled Dorcas closer. “We’re at a party, it’s Christmas, and we have a while until school and all the stress it brings. Tonight belongs to us, Cas.”

“Yeah,” Dorcas answered, thinking it over. “Yeah, you’re right, Marls.”

“Of course I am, darling, it’s me we’re talking about,” Marlene smirked. “Now let’s get in line for drinks.” 

As they entered the line, Dorcas retreated back into her thoughts. It was something she did often, hiding inside her mind. It made things easier. Dorcas didn’t have a bad life, not at all. Her parents may be a bit absent, but who could blame them? They had demanding jobs. Her friends all seemed to have people that they cared about a little more than her, but that was alright. She had never been anyone’s favorite, she didn’t need to be. She could handle being the second choice. And yeah, maybe she was hopelessly in love with a girl who was wildly out of her league and would never love her back. But hey, that’s life, right? She chuckled humorlessly to herself.

Finally they were at the front of the line for drinks. Marlene grabbed two cups and filled them both with punch. The bowl refilled itself as they walked away.

“So, we need a plan,” Marlene stated, eyes twinkling.

“For what exactly?”

“Setting up Lily and James, obviously.”

“Oh right,” Dorcas said, blushing slightly. No matter what she did, she couldn’t seem to keep her thoughts off Marlene. “So, what do you think we should do?”

“Hmm. Well, obviously we want to get them together sooner rather than later. Oh wait. Wait. Oh my god I’ve totally got it,” Marlene exclaimed, bouncing adorably on her heels.

“What?” Dorcas asked. “What’s the plan?”

“We get them under the mistletoe! Can’t believe I didn’t think of that before, it’s so obvious.”

“There’s mistletoe?” 

“Dorcas, it’s a Christmas party, of course there’ll be mistletoe. All we have to do is get James and Lily under it!” Marlene replied. “But how?”

“I can grab James and tell him I need him for something, and you can grab Lily, and we can both bring them towards the mistletoe?” Dorcas suggested. Heat flared in her stomach when Marlene bit her lip, seemingly thinking it over.

“Yeah, that could work. Wait, do you know where the mistletoe is?” Marlene asked.

“Uh, no, but I’ll find it,” Dorcas stuttered slightly, cursing herself in her head for her awkwardness.

“Come on, I’ll show you so you know for sure,” Marlene responded, grabbing Dorcas’s hand again to pull her through the room. 

Dorcas couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed. The music in the ballroom was classical, but it was loud as well. Everyone was talking loudly and laughing, and the sounds and the movement around Dorcas began to seem too loud, beating on her mind as she tried to shake it off. The noise built and built until it roared in her ears, a cacophony of cheerful sounds that seemed more like thunder.

Marlene looked over her shoulder. Dorcas’s face seemed to be set in a permanent grimace. She stopped walking. “Cas, are you alright?”

Dorcas nodded, trying to smile, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Yeah, I’m fine.” The music went into a crescendo and Dorcas winced noticeably.

“The music is too loud, isn’t it?” Marlene guessed. Dorcas looked ashamed but she nodded slightly. Marlene grabbed her and steered her out of the ballroom and into a closet down the hall.

Dorcas leaned against the wall, hiding her face with her hands. Her face was red and she was curling in on herself, embarrassed and shaking slightly. Marlene couldn’t stand to see Dorcas so upset.

“Cas? Can you look at me, darling?” She whispered. Dorcas shook her head. “Ok, that’s alright. Just listen to my voice, ok? Don’t listen to anything else, just my voice. It’s alright. You’re ok. I know it sucks to have the world feel entirely too big for a minute. It’s not your fault though. You didn’t do anything wrong. It’s ok. You’re alright.” Marlene soothed her friend gently. Dorcas took her head out of her hands slowly. Marlene hadn’t realized how close their faces were until there were only a few inches between them.

“I’m ok,” Dorcas whispered. “I’m alright.”

“Of course you are,” Marlene replied gently.

“Yeah. Sorry I freaked out.”

“Don’t apologize. It’s ok, it wasn’t your fault. I get like that too sometimes, you know? Everything is just too loud, or too quiet, and suddenly the world is way too big for you to handle.”

“Yeah. It sucks,” Dorcas laughed weakly. Marlene smiled in response. She gazed into Dorcas’s eyes. She never noticed the way they captured light, turning the smallest of beams into flecks of gold surrounded by gleaming chestnut. She leaned in subconsciously.

Dorcas felt her face heating up as Marlene looked at her and got even closer. It was practically the beginning of all of her dreams, but Marlene didn’t want that. She didn’t want Dorcas. And it was unfair to let her get so close when she didn’t know about how Dorcas felt. It felt too much like taking advantage of her. 

“So, uh, should we rejoin the party?” Dorcas asked awkwardly, hoping to at least get Marlene a few inches away from her. She wasn’t sure how long she could control herself with Marlene so close.

“Hmmm?” Marlene said, pulled out of her trance, moving away slightly. Dorcas was glad she had moved, and simultaneously disappointed. “Oh yeah, sure.”

“Ok good, because I…. Wait, do you smell something?” 

“What do you mean?”

“It smells like smoke.”

 

——————————————————————————————

 

Frank and Alice 

 

“So, you wanna find the dance floor?” Frank grinned.

“I guess,” Alice replied with a smile. “I could use some relaxation.”

“Hey, my mum wasn’t that stressful to be around!”

“No, she was nice, she was just.. intense, you know?” Alice said. “She has a lot of high expectations, which is good, but also kind of crazy?”

“Yeah, I get it,” Frank responded, rubbing the back of his neck. “She’s always been like that.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. She means well, she just wants me to succeed, but…”

“It’s stressful?”

“Yeah,” Frank chuckled. “That about sums it up. I mean, she just wants me to have a good life, but it has to be a good life by traditional standards. I have to get a good job, marry the love of my life, have two kids and settle down in the suburbs in a two-story house with a white picket fence. And I know that even if I don’t do all of that Mum’ll still be proud of me, but I still feel like not being the best by her standards means letting her down.”

“Well, hey, you’re pretty fantastic, you know? Without even trying,” Alice said. “You’re clever, you’re smart, you’re handsome-“

“Alice, hey, you don’t have to do this,” Frank responded. “We can just go dance.”

“I know, but I want to tell you this. I like complimenting you. You get stuck in your own head so often, you know? And you really are brilliant Frank. Believe me. You’ll be an Auror, and so will I, and we’ll be a kickass duo. You don’t have to be perfect to be something extraordinary.” Alice said. “You and me? We’re gonna do amazing things, Frank.”

“Thanks, beautiful. You’re right as always. I needed that. And also, we may be a kickass duo, but I know my place. I’ll be the muscle while you call the shots,” Frank grinned.

“Oh, of course. Now come on, it’s time to dance!” 

“Lead the way, princess,” Frank replied, offerings hand to Alice. She took it and began to lead him towards the ballroom.

“Hey, I think we took a wrong turn,” Frank said as the went down a hallway. “I think the ballroom was to the right of the front door.”

“Really? I was sure it was this way. Wasn’t Lily headed this way?”

“No, she was going to find wherever the drinks were, and those would probably be near the ballroom, wouldn’t they?”

“I guess they might be. We can turn back and- holy shit!”

Alice jumped back. The room that they had just passed was ablaze, the curtains consumed by flames that were steadily rising. The walls began to crack and crumble as the flames hissed and spat their embers as far as could be reached.

“Aguamenti! Aguamenti!” Alice heard Frank shout behind her. She took out her wand and began to do the same. The spells were useless, only seeming to encourage the fire into burning its opposition.

“Run. Run!” Alice cried, turning around just as Frank reached the same conclusion. She grabbed his hand and started sprinting. Behind her, she heard a scream. Then more, and crashing sounds and the hiss of the flames she was trying to escape that only seemed to get louder as she ran towards the front door.

She didn’t look back.

She would regret that later.

 

——————————————————————————————

 

Sirius and Remus

 

“You look hot as hell,” Sirius said, admiring his boyfriend as Remus walked ahead of him.

“Thanks. You’re passable, I suppose,” Remus smirked.

“Just passable? I’m gorgeous, bitch.”

“Meh. I don’t really see the appeal.”

“Is that why you’re taking me to the courtyard, where it’s secluded, dark, and there’s less of a chance of getting caught performing… unsavoury activities? Because you’re not attracted to me in any way?” Sirius drawled, raising an eyebrow. Remus blushed slightly.

“Perhaps unsavory activity in the courtyard should be skipped if you’re going to be so mouthy,” he responded.

“You usually like it when I’m mouthy,” Sirius flirted.

“Sirius.”

“Remus.”

Remus broke character and smiled. “You wanna just go to the kitchen and relax, get some food?”

“Oh god yes, I’ve missed Georgie. And hey, we should see if Micks and Cassie want to join us on our trip to town. I think they’d like the record store. And the diner,” Sirius said. James’s house was pretty far removed from everything, but there was a small town nearby. It wasn’t much, a few neighborhoods, some shops, and a school, but it was fun to visit when they got bored.

“That’s not a bad idea. We’ll bring along Lily too,” Remus replied. “We can make a day of it.”

“That would be fun,” Sirius said as they wandered into the kitchen. “Georgie? Are you here, mate?”

Georgie appeared by Sirius’s side, clad in a red pillowcase. “Hello Master Sirius. What can I get for you?”

“Georgie, please just call me Sirius. And can we get some chocolate and butterbeer please?” 

“Of course, Mast- Sirius. Of course, Sirius,” Georgie replied, stumbling over his words to correct himself. He then disappeared as suddenly as he had appeared.

“I love that elf,” Remus said, hopping up to sit on the kitchen counter. Sirius walked over, coming to stand between Remus’s legs, arms wrapped around his waist and face buried in his neck. 

“Not that I’m not enjoying this, but what’s with the cuddling? Are you ok, Siri?” Remus asked gently, brushing Sirius’s hair away from his face and combing his fingers through the soft, dark locks.

“I’m good. I just missed being close to you,” Sirius mumbled into his neck.

“Mm, me too. I love James and Peter, but living with them in the dorm makes privacy a myth.”

“Yeah. Speaking of privacy, it would appear that no one else is in here…” Sirius trailed off, choosing to kiss Remus’s neck instead of continuing his sentence. Remus let out a soft moan, curling into Sirius as he bit and sucked at right where Remus’s neck met his shoulder.

“Here is your chocolate and butterbeer, sirs,” A voice rang out. Sirius jumped away from Remus to find Georgie holding their food.

“Uh, thanks Georgie,” Sirius said, taking the drinks and chocolate from him. Georgie saluted smartly and disappeared again. 

“So, as happy as I am to have chocolate, I would like to go back to what we were doing,” Remus said. Sirius turned around to see Remus with his hair mussed up, a small grin, and a light hickey forming on his neck. Sirius smirked and went back to Remus, eager to continue as well.

——————————————————————————————

 

James

 

“Hey, Georgie, do you remember which doorway Mum hung the- Oh Merlin!” 

James turned around to face the door almost as quickly as he had walked into the kitchen. He was used to Remus and Sirius being affectionate, but he really didn’t need to walk in on Sirius shirtless and Remus grinding against him like his life depended on it.

“Sorry mate,” Sirius said, snickering as James still refused to turn around.

“I’ll believe you’re sorry if I turn around and your shirt is back on,” James retorted.

“We’re decent,” Remus replied. James turned around cautiously and saw that Remus wasn’t lying.

“A miracle, to be sure. Have either of you seen Evans?” He asked, hoping to move on quickly.

“Uh, no. Why are you looking for her?” Remus asked.

“Well, we have a plan to get Cas and Marlene under the mistletoe.”

“Are you sure that would work?” Sirius asked. “I mean, sure, a quick snog is nice, but it won’t get them to admit their feelings.”

“Probably not, but at least they’d be aware of the fact that the other isn’t repulsed by them,” James replied.

“Alright, let’s see if we can find-“ Remus was interrupted by a scream and a crash. The three boys looked at each other.

“Why exactly-“

“Would someone-“

“Be screaming?” 

James looked at the other two as he finished the sentence. In unison they all began to hurry towards the party.

It was chaos. There were shouts and screams. People were crashing into each other and furniture and decorations to get out. And through it all, smoke weaved a blindfold, blanketing the room, making it hard to see and harder to breathe.

“What the hell is happening?” James shouted, grabbing a man who was scurrying towards the door.

“There’s a fire!” The man cried out, trying to get James to let go. “Someone started a fire!”

“Who?”

“I don’t know! Let me go!” The man cried. James released him and he ran for the door. James turned around to look at Sirius and Remus. 

“Get out of here. If you see any of the others, stay with them, make sure they get out alright,” he ordered, hoping that they would follow his lead.

“Where are you going?” Sirius asked.

“I’ve got to find Lily!”

“James, I swear to god, if you die I’ll kill you, mate,” Remus said. “But go. Make sure she’s alright. Stay safe, we love you.”

“Fuck shit up but don’t die,” Sirius said. “Love you, Prongs.”

“I love you guys too,” James responded. He dashed away, not looking back.

He barreled into the ballroom, coughing as he inhaled smoke and ash. The ballroom had almost succumbed to the fire, the curtains burning and the walls and ceiling crumbling.

“Lily!” James shouted hoarsely. “Lily, are you here? Where are you?”

Seeing nothing, James ran out of the ballroom. He began to head towards the other wing of the house, shouting the whole time for Lily.

He ran past the bedrooms, horrified as his home crumbled around him. He could barely see through all the smoke. He couldn’t see, he couldn’t breathe, he could barely hear over the roar of the fire. His lungs were burning, his mind was melting, he couldn’t see, couldn’t hear, couldn’t breathe, couldn’t see, couldn’t hear, couldn’t-

Breathe.

James gasped in a breath. There, in the parlor, lying on the ground, was Lily, lying on the ground. The fire was all around her, but it hadn’t gotten to her yet.

“Aguamenti! Aguamenti!” James screamed. He couldn’t put out the fire, but he managed to clear a small path. He ran across the room, shielding his head with his arms as he crossed the dancing fire. 

When James made it to Lily, he knelt by her side. He shook her, trying to wake her. She didn’t wake up. James couldn’t tell if she was breathing. The door he had come through collapsed behind him. 

“Lily. Lily, wake up. Please wake up. Rennervate. Rennervate!” James cried desperately, trying to revive her. Fora few moments, nothing happened. 

Then Lily coughed.

James laughed in disbelief. Lily was alive. She was alive. And now it was up to him to get them out.

——————————————————————————————

 

Peter and Mary

 

“What the bloody hell is going on?” Peter cried out. He and Mary had only just arrived for the party, and everyone was leaving?

“Pete! Peter, Mary, thank god you’re here,” Peter heard. He turned to see Alice and Frank running towards him and Mary.

“Hey. What’s happening?” Mary asked, a bit surprised when Alice swept her into a hug.

“There was a fire. James’s house is on fire,” Frank responded.

“On fire? Is everyone out? Are they ok?” Peter asked, mind racing. Where were the other Marauders? And Lily, Marlene, and Dorcas?

“I think everyone got out. Marlene and Dorcas are over there. I haven’t seen the others yet,” Alice answered. Marlene and Dorcas wandered up to the group.

“Peter, Mary, thank Merlin you’re ok,” Dorcas said, pulling both of them into a hug. 

“Hey guys. Has anyone seen Sirius and Remus? Or James and Lily?” Peter asked. 

“I haven’t seen any of them since the party started,” Marlene replied.

“We only just got here. I saw Lily in the parlor though, so she probably got out in time,” Alice responded.

“Of course she did. They all got out. They had to,” Dorcas said weakly. Peter noted that she looked on the verge of panic until Marlene pulled her closer and wrapped her arms around her. That seemed to pull Dorcas back from the edge. 

Peter didn’t have many talents, but he could read people. He knew that everyone was more scared than they were letting on. Dorcas wasn’t the only one panicking. Alice’s eyes kept darting around, searching the crowd around them. Frank kept looking back towards the fire. Marlene seemed to be focusing on Dorcas to prevent herself from panicking. Mary was in shock beside Peter. He draped his jacket over her and wrapped an arm around her, hoping to ground her.

“Guys, hey, listen. It’ll be alright. Sirius may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he knows that getting set on fire is bad. And Remus would make sure they were safe. And do you think Lily would let a fire kill James? No, nothing gets to kill James but her. They’ll all be fine,” Peter said, trying to reassure everyone. A few of them huffed out a laugh. 

“Yeah, c’mon, guys, listen to Peter. You really think fire can do anything about all this fabulousness?” A voice said from behind Peter.

“Sirius!” Marlene cried, leaving Dorcas’s side for a moment to hug him. Sirius laughed into her shoulder.

“Damn, Micks, someone might think you actually cared about me.”

“Don’t be a dick. Hey guys. Everyone alright?” Remus piped up from beside Sirius.

“Yeah, we’re good. Have you seen James and Lily?” Alice asked. 

“James ran off to find Lily. I don’t know where he is,” Remus responded.

“Is he still-“

“He’s still inside,” Sirius confirmed.

A silence fell over the group. In unison, they looked towards the house, crumbling in the flames.

“Oh god,” Frank said, paler than Peter had ever seen him. “Oh god, what if-“

“No what ifs!” Peter cut in. “James will get Lily and they’ll get out alright. That’s it.”

“Yeah. Yeah. Peter is right. They’ll be ok,” Dorcas said, finding her voice. Marlene left Sirius to go and wrap her in a hug again. Dorcas melted into her side. Peter made a note of that. Lily and James would be interested in it when they made it out.

For a while, the group just watched the fire before them. Aurors and other trained wizards had arrived, trying to get the fire under control, but their attempts were barely making headway. Peter began to worry. James was one of the smartest people he knew, but what if he didn’t make it out in time? What if he was trapped inside?

“Ok, I can’t handle this,” Alice said after a few moments. “This is driving me insane. They’re not out here, we know that much. Maybe they’re close to the door in the house, and someone can go get them out?”

“Alice is right. Someone’s got to make sue they’re ok. I’m gonna go in, just a bit, and see if I can find them. If I do, I’ll bring them out, and if not, well, I’ll do what I can,” Sirius responded.

“Sirius Orion Black if you go anywhere near that fire I’ll dump you so fast,” Remus threatened.

“Babe, someone has to get to them. Look, Euphemia and Fleamont are over there, talking with those Aurors. You wanna be the one to tell them that their son didn’t make it out? You wanna tell them that James is gone?”

“Don’t,” Remus replied in a low voice. “Don’t you dare use them as an excuse to put yourself in danger.”

“Look, someone has to go. And James is my brother.”

“And Lily’s my sister,” Marlene said. “I’m going with you.” 

Peter looked between the two of them. They held the same resolution in their eyes, and the same resignation. There was no stopping them, not when they knew the consequences but didn’t care.

“Uh, like hell you are, Marls,” Dorcas said. “No. No way in hell you go anywhere near that.”

“Dorcas,” Peter found himself saying thickly. “Dorcas, there’s no way we can stop them. Look at them. They’re doing this.”

Dorcas stared at Marlene. In the light of the fire, the tears in her eyes became more apparent, and so did the determination in Marlene’s.

“No,” Dorcas whispered. “Please don’t.” 

Marlene began to move as if to go to Dorcas, but stopped herself and stood her ground. “I have to.”

“Have to what exactly?” A voice asked from behind Peter. He turned around.

And there was James, holding Lily carefully in his arms, alive and safe.

“James!” Sirius shouted running over to him, the rest of the group hot on his heels. James carefully handed Lily off to Marlene before engulfing Sirius in a hug. Remus and Peter joined in, gripping their friend tightly.

“James? Is Lily ok?” Alice asked. She, Marlene, Dorcas, Mary and Frank were gathered around. Marlene was holding onto Lily’s wrist. Peter guessed she was checking her pulse, but she wasn’t letting go. A comforting habit? He’d have to ask later.

“She’s alright. I couldn’t wake her up, but she’s breathing pretty steadily. She should be fine,” James replied. Marlene breathed out a sigh of relief, but she didn’t let go of Lily’s wrist. Dorcas kneeled behind her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. 

“So everyone’s alright?” James asked, looking around the group for confirmation. He got various murmurs of assent in response. “Ok. Good. That’s good. Does anyone know what happened?”

“No. I’m sorry, James, but this is insane. Who would want to set your house on fire?” Frank asked.

“Death Eaters,” Dorcas answered gravely. “The Potters are very pro-muggle, and the Death Eaters hate ‘blood traitors’ or whatever the hell they call pureblood who aren’t on their side.”

“Shit,” James said, the blood draining from his face. “Fucking hell, Cas, you think?”

“It would make sense,” Mary piped up. “They would want to wipe out the peaceful opposers first. And what better time to do Ethan when everyone’s guard is down?”

Before anyone could reply, Lily stirred. James hurried to her side next to Marlene.

“Evans? You alright?”

Lily opened her eyes. James laughed in relief. Marlene exhaled shakily, smiling for the first time since they escaped the fire. She turned to bury her face in Dorcas’s neck, seeking comfort. 

“Potter? What…. What happened?” Lily asked groggily.

“Don’t worry, Evans, everyone is ok.” James said, looking around. His parents were safe, talking to Aurors. Frank and Alice were watching as the other guests moved around and spoke with other partygoers. Sirius and Remus were holding hands as they watched the fire. Marlene and Dorcas were right next to Lily, unwilling to leave their friend’s side. 

Then James’s eyes met Peter’s. And whatever he was looking for, he seemed to find in them, because he turned back to Lily with a smile on his face.

“Everyone is ok.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm sorry it's been so long. One day I'll update within a week of my last update and y'all will be shook. Anyway, hope you enjoyed that chapter. If you did, leave a kudos and a comment, they're really encouraging, and it's nice to know that people are enjoying this! Have a good day/night! Thanks for reading!


	17. Cuddles and Cryptic Warnings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> GUYS! A FRIEND OF MINE MADE SOME AWESOME FANART FOR LAST CHAPTER, GO CHECK IT OUT!!! https://toastiannn.tumblr.com/

“You’d think Hogwarts life would feel mundane after all that. That we’d have gained some perspective and learned that we should live each day like our last and learn as much as we can. But no. Here I am, taking my last stand against tyranny and oppression. I would rather have died in that fire than get out of bed today.”

“Marlene no.”

“Marlene yes.” Marlene rolled over in bed, avoiding numerous attempts to get her up.

“You have to get up. We have class,” Mary said exasperatedly. 

“No, fuck off.”

Despite the excitement of the holidays, life back at Hogwarts was as ordinary as ever. The girls had moved back into their dorm, and along with being back at Hogwarts came all the usual struggles. Such as finding the will to get out of bed.

“C’mon Marls,” Dorcas said sleepily from her bed. “If I get you a chocolate biscuit after class, will you get up?”

“You’re not up either.”

“Oh for god’s sake, both of you get up. Or at least come up with a decent reason for skipping class that I can give to the professors,” Lily called from inside the bathroom.

“We’re so traumatized from the fire that we’ve been having nightmares constantly and barely getting sleep and we’re taking the day to rest,” Dorcas answered. 

Marlene sat up to stare at her. “That’s actually true. How’d you know I was having nightmares?”

“You whine in your sleep a lot,” Dorcas murmured, rolling onto her stomach and burying her face in her pillow to hide her sudden blush.

“You’ve been having nightmares?” Lily asked concernedly, exiting the bathroom to sit next to Marlene. She grabbed her wrist without even thinking about it.

“Yeah, but they’re not so bad. They just wake me up all the time,” Marlene replied absentmindedly, gazing at Dorcas. “How did you know I make noise in my sleep?”

“We’ve been in the same dorm for six years?”

“How did you know it’s happening because of the nightmares?”

“Well….”

“You haven’t been sleeping either,” Marlene accused. “Cas, why didn’t you tell us?”

“Why didn’t you tell anyone about your nightmares?” Dorcas countered.

“I’m fine!”

“Well, so am I!”

“Clearly not if you’re staying up all night!”

“You’re the one having nightmares, I just can’t sleep!”

“Well-“  
“THAT’S ENOUGH!” Alice shouted, silencing everyone. They all looked over at her. “Both of you are very clearly not fine. You’re both staying here for the day and sleeping. We’ll get notes for you.”

Mary nodded. “Yeah, don’t worry. If you haven’t been sleeping since the fire, you can’t go to class and expect to do well.”

“Alright, fine. But if I reserve the right to get up and start going to classes at anytime,” Dorcas said.

“Nerd,” Marlene coughed. 

“Oh shut up, jock.”

“Did you just call me a jock? A jock? No. Unacceptable,” Marlene responded. 

“Acceptable and true,” Dorcas replied.

“Ok, we’re gonna leave. If we come back and you’ve bickered all day instead of sleeping I’ll kill the both of you,” Alice said from near the door.

“Yes mum,” the two girls chorused. Lily, Mary, and Alice exited, leaving them on their own.

“Sooo,” Dorcas began, unsure of what to say. Were people always this awkward when trying to have a conversation? Or was it just her?

“Ugh. I’m fully awake now. How are we supposed to go back to sleep?” Marlene grumbled. Dorcas smiled at the adorable pout on her face, all thoughts of awkwardness replaced with fondness for the other girl.

“Here, you wanna put on a record?” She asked, pointing towards the phonograph that sat on a desk near her bed.

“Sure. And can I come over there? The vent is right over my bed and I’m freezing my ass off.”

“Well, we can’t have that when it’s so nice to look at,” Dorcas replied without thinking. She immediately shut up, tips of her ears going red. Marlene snorted.

“Careful now, watch where your hands are or I’ll think you’re up to something funny,” she teased. Dorcas blushed as she grabbed a Queen record and put it on, hands shaking slightly as she adjusted the volume. By the time she turned back around, Marlene was sprawled over her bed.

“Scoot,” Dorcas said, shoving Marlene over slightly to make room. She laid back down, facing away from Marlene and towards the window. Marlene groggily snuggled up close and wrapped an arm around her waist from behind.

“Is this ok?” Marlene whispered. Dorcas could feel her breath on the back of her neck. It tickled slightly, but Dorcas didn’t hate the feeling.

“Yeah,” She whispered back. “It’s alright.”

“Cas?” Marlene whispered.

“Mhm?”

“I’m sorry for arguing, earlier. I’m just so tired and hearing that you weren’t sleeping got me worried. I got annoyed when you wouldn’t admit that it was an issue. I’m really sorry.”

Dorcas huffed out a small laugh. “It’s not your fault, Marls. I got upset too, I argued as much as you did.”

“Yeah, but you were right. My nightmares are a bigger issue than I was letting on,” Marlene said quietly, bringing a hand up to Dorcas’s hair and playing with it absentmindedly.

“Yeah, well, me not sleeping was a bigger issue than I was letting on. We were both right to be worried, and we’re both sorry for arguing. And now, we’re both going to get some sleep,” Dorcas responded. She leaned back into Marlene slightly as the hand in her hair continued its soft, calming movements.

Marlene giggled. “Yeah. G’night, Cas.” She lowered her hand and wrapped her arm back around Dorcas.

“Goodnight, Marls.”

It was hard not to drift off like that, with Marlene’s arm around her and music playing softly in the background. So Dorcas closed her eyes and allowed herself, for the first time since Christmas, to sleep peacefully, wrapped in a cozy warmth.

——————————————————————————————

“Cas is skipping class?” James asked, astonished. “No way.”

“That’s what I thought too,” Lily replied as she finished eating her toast. “But she hasn’t been sleeping so Alice is forcing Marlene and her to take the day off.”

“Don’t you mean her and Marlene?” James teased. Lily threw a grape at him.

“Fuck off, Potter. Your grammar is usually worse than mine.”

“Yeah yeah. And hey, guess what this means?”

“What?” Lily asked.

“We can have a Team Dorlene meeting without getting caught,” James answered excitedly. It had been forever since they had a meeting, and there was a lot that needed to be discussed.

“Ooh, good idea,” Lily said. “You get the word out to your people, I’ll get word out to mine.”

“Lily,” James said carefully.

“Hmm?”

“You realize your people and my people are kind of the same people now?”

Lily looked around. Alice and Frank were sitting with Peter and Mary, laughing as Peter told a story. Remus was studying while Sirius’s head was in his lap, occasionally pausing his reading to feed him a strawberry. Marlene and Dorcas were up in the dorm, but Lily could see their usual spots between her and Remus were left open. She hadn’t quite noticed when their friend groups had blended together so tightly, but it felt as though it had been that way forever.

Lily wasn’t the best with change. She needed time to adjust, especially when it came to big changes. But somehow, the merging of the Marauders and her friend group was so natural it barely felt like a change at all. Lily couldn’t even remember when it had happened. She had been friends with Remus for forever, and Sirius for awhile, but when did James and Peter become part of the package? When did the rest of her friends begin hanging out with them as well? Looking back, Lily realized that maybe there was never much of a difference at all.

“Huh,” she remarked. “I guess you’re right.”

James smiled. “We’ll get the word out together?”

“Together,” Lily grinned.

——————————————————————————————

“Hey, Team Dorlene meeting in the library after class,” Lily said as she sat in her desk in DADA. Alice, who was sitting behind her, perked up.

“Really?” She asked excitedly. “Oh thank god, something interesting to do. Frank, we have a Team Dorlene meeting after class.”

Frank smiled at his girlfriend’s excitement. “We’ll be there.”

“Tell Peter and Mary as well.”

“We will,” Alice replied right as Professor Rein walked in.

After the detention debacle, Lily thinks McGonagall must have spoken with him, because he hadn’t expressed any anti-muggle opinions since. He also hadn’t done anything interesting since.

“Alright, class, today we’re discussing curses and counter curses……”

Lily zoned out as Rein droned on. She would just read the textbook later to find out what had happened.

As she sunk into daydreaming, her pleasant thoughts turned darker. She didn’t remember much of the fire, only passing out after seeing a figure and waking up on the Potters’ front lawn. James and the others had filled her in afterwards, but the blank spot troubled Lily. Who was the figure she saw? Why did he knock her out? And why attack the Potters when a party was going on? Wouldn’t it make more sense to attack when the house was mostly empty?

“Miss Evans?” A voice pulled her out of her thoughts. She looked up and saw most of the class looking at her expectantly.

“I’m sorry, what was the question?” Lily asked. Rein sighed.

“I asked if you know the counter-curse for Fiendfyre.”

“Er, no sir,” Lily answered awkwardly.

“Perhaps you would if you paid attention in my class. Now, remember, homework is eight inches of parchment on the most commonly used curses and their counter-curses. You are all dismissed.” 

Lily scoffed as the class was dismissed. She was all for knowing how to defend herself, but Rein didn’t get to demand things from her when he was the worst defense teacher they’d had yet.

“Alright, Lily?” Remus asked as he fell into step beside her. “Rein’s class is dull, you weren’t the only one zoning out.”

“Yeah, I figured,” Lily snorted. “I just wish we had a better teacher, you know?”

“Yeah, me too. This stuff is actually really interesting if it’s taught right.”

“Only you would think this stuff is interesting, you nerd,” Lily said affectionately.

“Like you don’t hang around the hospital wing to see how Madam Pomfrey heals people?”

“That’s different!”

“How, Lily?” Remus asked amusedly.

“Because I say so,” Lily replied childishly as they entered the library. She didn’t want to tell him that she wanted to learn how to use healing magic in case the war got worse and she needed to know.

“Alright Team Dorlene, it’s good to see you again. Lily, if you would review all pertinent developments since our last meeting?” James asked dramatically.

“Certainly, James. Now, our last meeting was before the blind date. As you may recall, we got some good flirting out of that attempt, but they didn’t manage themselves together and start dating. Since then, we have been subjected to more useless pining.”

“You should have seen Dorcas when Marlene was about to go back into the fire to find you,” Peter interjected. “They were staring at each other, and I thought Dorcas was gonna cry. It was really gay and very dramatic.”

“Alright, team.” James said gravely. “You heard Peter. If even a near-death event can’t make them take a risk, we’ve got to step up our game. Now, the next plan we came up with was Gryffindor Scores And So Does Dorcas. Alice, you were the one who came up with this plan, so how would you like to explain it again to refresh our memories?”

“Sure thing.” Alice stood. “Now, the original plan was to start a school paper and have Dorcas do the sports section, forcing her to spend time in the locker room with Marlene. Now, McGonagall has point-blank refused to allow a school paper, citing its ‘uselessness and little educational value’. Despite my disagreement, we all know Minnie is a goddess, and I dare not speak out against her.”

“Hear hear!” Sirius called out.

“However, what Her Magical Eminence will allow is more intensive announcing during Quidditch matches, allowing for interviews and one-on-one talks with the players. I motion that we nominate Dorcas as our co-commentator and send her do the interviews.” Alice sat back down as she finished.

“Good improvisation, and a good plan. All in favor of putting this into motion next?” Lily asked. Almost every hand shot up, except Sirius and Remus.

“Objections, gentlemen?” James asked.

“I still say we let the figure things out on their own. It’s better that we stay out of it and let them handle their feelings,” Remus answered.

“Yeah, no, I have a different objection. One that actually matters. Why can’t we use my beautiful dramatic plan?” Sirius asked.

“Well you see, Sirius, your plan involved a lot of heartbreak and injury, and we need to start easier than that. Not to mention it involves a lot of variables that we’re not in control of,” James answered smartly. Lily wondered how he was so good at turning things around for the positive, and why she hadn’t noticed that before. Granted, she hadn’t noticed how he kept his sleeves rolled up before, and now she couldn’t take her focus off of that detail.

‘The hell, Evans?’ She thought. ‘What are you doing? Potter is a boy. An admittedly attractive boy, but you really don’t have time for that right now.’

“Ok. So, we try Gryffindor Scores And So Does Dorcas next, and should that fail, we try a talent show, if I’m remembering right?” Lily asked.

“Yep,” Mary confirmed. “I’m pretty sure that was the order we voted on.”

“Alright gang. This one just might work,” Frank said excitedly.

“Nice job everyone, this was a good, productive meeting. We’ll enact our plan as soon as we see the opportunity. On three, Team Dorlene,” James said, sticking his hand out. The rest of the group placed their hands atop his.

“One, two, three… Team Dorlene!” They all exclaimed at once. 

Madam Pince appeared out of nowhere to shush them.

“We won’t apologize for living life to the fullest, Madam,” Sirius said. She glared at him and walked away.

——————————————————————————————

“Hey, shouldn’t you guys go wake up Marlene and Dorcas before dinner?” James asked as they all exited the library.

“Oh, yeah,” Lily responded. “Kinda forgot about that.”

“You forgot that they were in your dorm sleeping but you remembered that you couldn’t go into your dorm?” James teased.

“Shut up, Potter,” Lily laughed. “I forgot that I needed to go wake them up for dinner.”

“Wow. You were planning to let them starve? Cruel, Evans. Very cruel,” James said. Lily giggled as he grinned.

“Oh no, you’ve discovered my evil plan,” She replied. “Whatever will I do now?”

As Lily entered the common room, she looked around to see if Marlene and Dorcas were already awake. When she saw that they weren’t around, she turned back to the group.

“Ok, guys, I’m gonna go wake them up. I’ll be right back,” She said.

Lily marched up the stairs and entered the dorm room. She looked towards Marlene’s bed and was surprised to find it empty. She looked around at almost squealed at what she saw. 

Marlene was wrapped around Dorcas, cuddling her tightly, an arm wrapped around her waist and a leg thrown over Dorcas’s. The blankets were tangled around their feet as the two slept peacefully, taking comfort in each other’s warmth rather than the blanket. Lily gasped upon seeing Dorcas clutching Marlene’s arm, pulling her even closer.

Lily exited the room as quietly as possible, running down the stairs. “Guys!” She exclaimed, drawing everyone’s attention. “You’ve gotta see this.”

“We can’t go up there,” Peter replied as the girls rushed forwards.

“I’ll take a picture,” Mary promised. 

Lily led the girls up the stairs and into the dorm as quietly as possible. They had similar reactions to hers, Alice would have woken them with her cooing if Lily hadn’t put a hand over her mouth. Mary, true to her word, snuck up on them to get a good angle, and then snapped a picture to show the guys.

“Yeah,” James remarked when he saw the picture. “This is absolutely the actions of two platonic gal pals. No feelings there at all.”

“You know the worst part?” Lily asked.

“What’s that?”

“We have to deal with them freaking out over it.”

——————————————————————————————

Lily, for all her complaining, was having a good time back at Hogwarts. And the excitement towards the end of the break made her forget about one thing as the week dragged on.

Snape.

“Lily, can I talk to you?”

“No, Snape,” Lily said, exiting the potions classroom. Snape trailed after her. “I told you over the break. I don’t want to see you again.”

“Lily, please. This is the only chance I have to warn you.”

“Warn me about what?” Lily asked, rounding on Snape. He smirked. Lily groaned. “Follow me, you inconsiderate dick.”

She led Snape into a small corridor, that was luckily empty. She turned to him again. “Either talk or walk away.”

“Bad things are about to happen at Hogwarts,” Snape said ominously.

“Yeah, no shit. I got that. What’s going to happen?” Lily asked angrily.

“I can’t tell you that.”

“And why the bloody hell not?”

“You know why.”

“Oh, right, who could forget your unwavering loyalty to a bunch of nazis,” Lily responded. “I’ll go to Dumbledore about this. You know I will.”

“You can’t. They’ve already killed once, Lily, don’t give them an excuse to do it again,” Snape said desperately.

“So you admit your Death Eater pals were responsible for that girl’s death?” Lily asked incredulously.

“Not them. Look, you’re in the middle of a lot of things you don’t understand, and no matter how much you hate me, I’ll love you. Always. So this is your warning: when you see the sign of the snake, just stay out of it.”

With that, Snape turned on his heel and marched down the hallway.

“Oi! What the bloody hell does that mean?” Lily called after him. He didn’t turn around, leaving Lily to wonder what his cryptic remarks meant.

She would soon wish she didn’t know.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. Two updates, in a single week? Am I actually a productive, functioning human? No. No I am not. That said, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Me? Building towards a real plot? It's more likely than you think. If you enjoyed this, leave a kudos and a comment, they're hella encouraging. Hope you all have a wonderful day/night! Thanks for reading!


	18. The Beginning of a New Plan

“You don’t know what to do about this, do you?” 

“Not in the slightest, no,” Lily agreed. She and Remus were in the library, hidden near a window towards the back of the shelves. The sunset was gorgeous outside, but unfortunately, Lily couldn’t find comfort in it.

“Ok. Go over it one more time for me,” Remus said from his chair.

“Right. So, Snape comes up to me after class and says he has to warn me about something. Normally I would tell him to fuck off, but with everything happening recently, I had to be sure there wasn’t a real issue,” Lily began, pacing as she spoke.

“Understandable,” Remus acknowledged. “Go on.”

“Right, so I pull him into a hallway and tell him to either tell me what’s going on or walk away. And he tells me, damn that dramatic evil greasy bastard, that bad things are going to happen and to stay away from the sign of the snake. Which, as far as I can tell, is utter bullshit.”

Remus looks at her thoughtfully. “What classes does Snape take?”

“I don’t bloody know, why would that- oh. You think he’s talking about a rune or something?” Lily asked. Remus shrugged.

“Could be. I don’t know, though, he might be clever, but Mulciber and the others don’t seem like they would have the patience or the smarts to learn much about runes.”

“I still think Mulciber should have been expelled after the Hogsmeade attack,” Lily responded darkly.

“Yeah, well, it’s Dumbledore. Beyond a few detentions he doesn’t really know how to handle discipline,” Remus replied. “But that’s not important right now. I have to ask, Lily, why come to me about this? Why not any of the others? Sirius knows more about Death Eaters and the Dark Arts.”

“I trust you. And I don’t want to stress out or scare any of the others. I haven’t mentioned it, but Alice startles easier now, after everything. Marlene gets a little nervous when she can’t see the exit of the room she’s in. Mary… well, Mary could meet a Death Eater and still sleep soundly the night after. She’s never phased by anything. But even Sirius doesn’t like getting too close to the fire in the common room anymore.” Lily lowered her voice, concern for her friends seeping through her words.

“And you came to me because I’m harder to shake?” Remus asked, a sardonic smile on his face.

“Well, kind of. Also you’re the smartest of the bunch. Don’t scoff, you know it’s true.” Lily cut off Remus’s protests. “We all get decent grades, but you’re the brightest.”

“The brightest wizard, maybe,” Remus said quietly. “But you’re on my level, if not higher, Lily.”

“Yeah, well, I still can’t figure this out. Not without help.”

“That’s why I’m here, Lils. So, sign of the snake. Could be a symbol that Death Eaters use?”

“I doubt it,” Lily replied. “Wouldn’t we have heard about something like that?”

“I suppose,” Remus responded. “But maybe it’s a bit more subtle. Do you think it’s a drawing or image, or something else?”

“I don’t know how I’m supposed to watch out for it if it’s not visible, so it’s probably an image. And obviously, it’ll have something to do with snakes.”

“Will it though?” Remus mused. “Would it be a literal snake or something more symbolic?”

“I…. Don’t know,” Lily said frustratedly. “God, there’s too much we don’t know. How do we figure this out? We need something else to go off of.”

“Yeah. Look, Lily, there’s not much we can do without more information. I’m sorry, but we don’t even know what this sign looks like. Without anything else, we really don’t have anything to go on.”

“I know. Thanks for trying.”

“Anytime,” Remus replied. “And hey, if I work something out, or you get more information, we’ll try to figure it out, alright? I’m not a fan of bad things happening at Hogwarts either.”

Lily smiled. “Yeah, thanks Remus.”

——————————————————————————————

“Guys, I have some interesting news!” Sirius burst into the common room, where for once, the entire group was quietly studying. 

“Sirius, goddamnit, we had peace and quiet for twenty whole minutes,” Lily said exasperatedly.

“Sounds dreadful. Anyway, back to my announcement,” Sirius replied.

“Can this wait?” Mary asked. “I’ve almost finished my history of magic essay.”

“Yeah, and I still have some transfiguration practice to do,” Frank said.

“You’re all useless nerds, every last one of you. Fine, I’ll wait. But no longer than ten minutes,” Sirius huffed, collapsing onto the couch.

About two minutes passed. Sirius stood and began to pace, sighing at random intervals and varying volume. He was ignored by all.

At five minutes, he began to make random things float around the room. He stopped when he almost spilled Remus’s tea and Remus shot a withering glare at him.

At seven minutes he resorted to leaning over everyone’s shoulders as they tried to work. Marlene finally snapped.

“Jesus fucking christ son of a virgin, what the bloody hell do you want, you overdramatic son of a bitch?”

“I’m glad you asked Marly!” Sirius grinned. “You see, dear old Minnie has come to me with some information.”

“Praise the Goddess’ name!” Alice cried. 

“Praise the Goddess, almighty McGonagall!” The rest of the group called in response.

“Someday she’s gonna catch us doing that, and it will end very badly for us.” Sirius paused. “Anyway, she told me that there’s gonna be some changes to the next few Quidditch games.”

“What?” Marlene asked. “Why weren’t the teams notified?”

“Oh no, marvelous Marlene, the changes won’t affect the actual games, no. It’s just going to make things more interactive!”

“Explain,” James said, playing along.

“Right. My gorgeous, incredible, wonderful-in-bed boyfriend is getting a co-commentator! This co-commentator will go and interview the players before each game in the locker rooms and whatnot, and they’ll do interviews after. They’ll also be up in the box beside Remus, helping with regular commentating during the game.” Sirius finished with a flourish.

“Huh. That actually doesn’t sound too bad. Might get more people excited about the game,” Marlene mused. “For the record, this person wouldn’t just be barging into the locker rooms, right?”

“No, I’m sure they’ll wait until everyone’s ready for them. And the interviews are really only so they can throw out some interesting tidbits during the game anyway. Your privacy will be respected,” Sirius responded.

“Well, that sounds neat,” Frank said.

“Yeah, it might be fun to have someone to banter with,” Remus smiled.

“Yeah, it sounds fun. Do we know who the person is gonna be?” Peter asked.

“Actually, perfect Peter, they’re right here in this very room!” Sirius announced. “For you see, the nominee for the position of brand new commentator is our very own, Dorcas Meadowes!”

“What?” Dorcas asked, shocked. “But I barely know anything about Quidditch!”

“Sure you do,” James replied. “You’ve listened to me and Marlene talk about it forever, I’m sure you’ve picked up on more than you think.”

“And if you’re still not sure, you can ask me anything you want to know,” Marlene promised. Doras turned to her and smiled weakly.

“And if I make a fool of myself?”

“Au contraire, Cas. The whole point is just to make things entertaining, making a fool of yourself is part of the job!” Sirius said.

“And I’ll be there to talk you through it,” Remus responded.

“Ok. Yeah, alright. I’ll do it,” Dorcas said. James cheered and Marlene wrapped her arms around Dorcas in a hug.

“It’ll be fun,” Lily called out from her chair. “And even if it’s dull, it’s not like it’ll kill you.”

——————————————————————————————

“This is going to kill me.”

“Elaborate, if you don’t mind,” Lily sighed resignedly.

Dorcas had grabbed her and James on their way to dinner and pulled them into the kitchen. When they realized this was another freakout over Marlene, they settled in and called for some food, knowing it would take awhile.

“I can’t do this Quidditch thing. No way. I almost cried when I saw Marlene in a tank top, what if I walk in on her shirtless? You know how much I panicked when I woke up with her cuddling me, I don’t think I can handle more of this,” Dorcas cried. “I went on for two hours because her arm was around my waist, do you have any idea how useless I truly am?”

“Ok, it’s alright,” James soothed. “You’ll do ok and this is alright.”

“No it’s not! Pull yourself together, woman! Level up and ask her out!” Lily exclaimed.

“Level up?” James asked amusedly.

“Man up is dumb. Are men used to bleeding every month? I think not. To say ‘man up’ is to play into misogynistic stereotypes. No, level up is the proper term,” Lily replied. James grinned.

“Couldn’t agree with you more, Evans. About the level up thing and the asking her out thing.”

“No way. No way am I asking Marlene out. What if she thinks I’m a creep? What if I ruin our friendship?” Dorcas asked frantically. “I couldn’t stand her hating me.”

“None of those things will happen. Look, if you’re not ready to ask her out, then don’t, but you don’t have to worry about losing her over this. Marlene definitely won’t think you’re a creep, and she won’t stop being your friend. Unless you actually do some creepy shit, but you wouldn’t even know how to be creepy if you tried,” James said. 

“Yeah. C’mon, Cas, it’s Marlene we’re talking about. Remember when everyone thought she and Sirius were dating? They stayed friends,” Lily remarked.

“Yeah, but they weren’t actually dating,” Dorcas replied.

“Ok, but the point is Marlene won’t abandon you because you have feelings for her,” James responded.

“How can you be sure?”

“Because she’s not a total asshole,” Lily answered sarcastically.

——————————————————————————————

“I’m a total asshole.”

Lily groaned. “Why is everyone determined to prove me wrong today?”

“What?” Marlene asked, looking at Lily curiously. “What are you-“

“Nothing,” Lily winced. “Just continue.”

Marlene had called for a common room sleepover after Lily got back from the kitchen. Lily groaned, knowing she was going to be subjected to more complaining about feelings. Honestly, the way Dorcas and Marlene gushed about each other was cute, but it was getting to be exhausting to sit through. They needed to hurry up and go out. This ridiculous plan better work.

“Ok, so, explain why you’re an asshole?” Sirius asked from where he was lounging on the couch. 

“I’m definitely gonna make sure Dorcas sees me shirtless.”

“Ok what?” Lily asked, sitting up from where she had been resting her head against Sirius’s legs. “Why?”

“I have to find a way to gauge if she’s interested in me, you know? And is it so bad that I want her to know I have a six-pack?” Marlene asked.

“Ok, the gauging interest thing is fair, but don’t you think that’s a little crazy?” Sirius asked. “I mean, going straight from awkward pining to being half-undressed is a big jump.”

“Actually, no,” Marlene replied. “I’ve been dancing around my feelings for her for so long. At least this way I’ll know if she’s attracted to me.”

“It’s hard not to be,” Lily joked.

“Aw, thanks babe. If the Dorcas thing doesn’t work out I’ll be sure to hit you up,” Marlene laughed. “Anyway, the way I see it going, she comes in while I’m shirtless, and if she acts like everything is normal, I’ll know she’s not really into me. If she shows signs of interest, I’ll know it’s time to get a bit flirty,” Marlene explained.

“Huh. Ok then. I guess that could work?” Sirius said. “Actually, yeah, it might. Remus just about jumped me the other day after Quidditch practice-“

“And that’s enough of that!” Lily cut him off. “Are you sure about this, Marly? It’s kind of a lot.”

“Red has a point, Micks.”

“I know. But honestly, what’s the worst that could happen?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Holy shit, I'm updating frequently? Wild. Anyway, hope you enjoyed that chapter. Sorry it's a bit short, but it's really just some filler before we move towards more exciting things. If you enjoyed, leave a comment and a kudos, they're really encouraging. Hope you have a good day/night, and thanks so much for reading!


	19. Well, I guess some new shit is gonna happen, huh?

“Ok, I’m not doing this. I’d rather die here. Goodbye, my friends. Cruel fate, your smiling irony has defeated me. Count yourself among the luckiest, for you were one of the few who could bring about my downfall. I salute your unending cruelty, your relentless triumph, your eternal misery-inducing guidance. I go out with a grin on my face, for I have met my match and am glad to submit to the unholy embrace of death.”

“Dorcas. What in the ever-loving fuck?” Lily replied.

“She’s too gay for this and she can’t handle it,” James said from his spot on the counter beside Lily. They were in the kitchen yet again, trying to coach Dorcas through her panic.

“How’d you translate that?”

“I’ve gotten really good at translating gay panic to English. It’s one of the few useful things Sirius taught me,” James answered with a smile.

“Alright then. Anyway, Dorcas. This isn’t gonna be that bad. You only have to be in there for about ten minutes. You might not even get a chance to talk to Marlene,” Lily attempted to reassure her friend.

“Is that worse? Do I want to talk to her or not? I don’t know. Lily, I’m dying here,” Dorcas whined.

“I know, I know darling. It’ll be alright,” Lily soothed.

“Remember, Cas, beginnings are more important than endings. You and Marlene, from the beginning, you two have been amazing. What happens next doesn’t matter much as long as you remember that,” James said.

“Your cryptic poetry bullshit is bullshit, Potter,” Dorcas laughed.

“Even if you get screwed over, you’ll have something worth remembering,” Lily said. She looked over at James. “Not the most helpful, but a good try.”

“How’d you translate that?” Dorcas asked.

“I’ve gotten pretty good at translating meaningful sentiments to English. It’s on of the few useful things James taught me,” Lily replied.

“Thanks, Evans,” James grinned. “Look, I’ve got to go. If I don’t get to the Great Hall in ten minutes, I won’t have time to eat before the match.”

“Ok. Thanks for your help, James,” Dorcas said.

“I thought I didn’t help much?”

“You didn’t, but I figured I’d at least pretend you did.”

“Fuck off,” James grinned as he left. 

Lily looked at Dorcas, who was now beginning to pace. She had done that a lot recently. That couldn’t be a good sign. 

“Cas, babe, why don’t you talk to me a bit, huh?” She asked gently.

“Are you sure? I’m sure you have other stuff to do, places to be-“

“Cas, none of that matters more than you,” Lily interrupted.

“Well, hey, maybe it should,” Dorcas answered. “I’m just freaking out, it’s nothing you haven’t heard before, I’m totally fine, I can handle this on my own-“

“Dorcas!” Lily cried. Dorcas stopped rambling to look at her. “Why don’t you want to talk to me?”

Dorcas paused, clearly caught off guard. “What makes you think I don’t want to talk to you?”

“You were fine talking while James was here, and now you won’t talk and you’re nervous. Did I do something?”

“I…. It’s just…” Dorcas slumped against the counter, looking defeated. “No, you haven’t done anything.”

“Then what’s wrong?”

“I just… What’s it like to be first?”

“What?” Lily asked confusedly.

“What’s it like to be someone’s first priority?” Dorcas asked. At Lily’s blank look, she elaborated. “I’ve never been anyone’s first priority. I’m ok with that, to be honest. I’m happy with being just part of the group. Makes life easier sometimes. But I guess… I don’t know. When Marlene was about to go back into the fire to find you, I just… I wondered what it’s like, to be that important to someone.”

Lily couldn’t quite understand. “Cas, you’re so important to all of us-“

“I know. I know all of the group loves me, and I love all of you guys too. But Alice has Frank. Mary has Peter. You have Marlene, Remus and Sirius have each other, and to be honest, you have James too. I like that, don’t get me wrong. Alice and Frank are going to be incredible together. Mary and Peter deserve each other. Remus and Sirius are soulmates. You and Marlene have a bond that’s really amazing, and when you and James get together, well, the world might end, but if it doesn’t, you’ll be fantastic together. I suppose I’m just a little jealous,” Dorcas finished.

“Jealous of what?” Lily breathed out.

“I don’t know. The fact that you’ve got a best friend? Or that you are someone’s best friend? I’m not making much sense right now. Look, this doesn’t matter-“

“Cas,” Lily jumped up, grabbing Dorcas to stop her from leaving. “You know you’re the most important of all of us, right?”

“What?”

“You are. You’re like, the heart of this group. I promise, Cas, you might not realize it, but you are the best of all of us,” Lily said.

Dorcas softened. “You don’t have to make up shit to humor me Lily. I told you, I’m alright with it.”

“I’m not. You might not be the most obvious choice, Cas, but you’re so important.”

“Ok. Yeah, alright,” Dorcas smiled.

“Good. Now explain why you’re in crisis?”

——————————————————————————————

“Ok. You got this, Dorcas?” Remus questioned as he and the other girls walked down towards the Quidditch pitch. Gryffindor was playing Ravenclaw, and it was going to be the first game Dorcas commented in. “It’s not gonna be difficult. We’ve got about twenty minutes before the match. You go into the lockers, talk to the girls about whatever, the game, the other team, star signs, I don’t really care. It won’t matter too much, but it’ll be fun to throw in some stuff during the game.” 

“Yeah, I got it,” Dorcas smiled. “I’ll be up in the stands in a bit.”

“Alright. Now, the rest of you lot, James is absolutely gonna act like an idiot. He always does when he’s on his broom. Scream at him, but make sure it’s insults.”

“Oh I can most certainly handle that,” Lily grinned. “See you after the game!”

She, Alice, and Mary made their way up to the stands, where Peter was waiting for them. 

“Cas and Remus seem alright?” He asked.

“Yep, they’re all set,” Mary said. “James and Sirius excited for the match?”

“Oh, of course. I think James is realizing they have a real shot at the Cup this season, so he’s been working the whole team extra hard. They seem ok with it though.”

“Marlene would sooner die than lose a Quidditch match, so I’m sure she’s fine with it,” Lily said. “How long until the match starts?”

“About five minutes,” Alice answered.

“Ok, good. I’ve got a question for you lot.”

“What’s up?” 

“The Valentines Hogsmeade trip is coming up. Should we do something specifically for Dorlene?”

“Actually, I say we sit Valentines out. We have a plan currently in progress, so maybe that’ll get them together, but I think most of us already have plans,” Mary responded.

“Shit. Am I the only single one on Valentines day again?” Lily whined. Alice laughed.

“James is single. And you’re supposed to pretend to like him- Lily!”

“What?”

“You should go out with James on Valentines!”

“No! No way in hell,” Lily replied. “No. Nope. Nuh-uh. Nah. No.”

“Wait, shit, that could actually help,” Peter said. Lily shot a betrayed look at him. “No, listen. We say you and James are gonna hang out since you’re both single, and Marlene and Dorcas spy on your date!”

“It won’t be a date!”

“Well, obviously. But the point is that they’ll spend time together trying to get you and James together,” Mary responded. “It’s perfect!”

“No. It’s torture.”

“Oh come on, Lily. James is hardly the worst option. It’s not even a real date! Just pretend to flirt a bit and gush about his hair or something when they ask about it later,” Alice said. 

Lily thought for a few seconds. They were right when they said Potter wasn’t the worst option. He was fun to hang out with. And he was capable of being funny, which is more than a lot of guys Lily had dated could say. He would make things bearable at least.

“Ugh. Goddamn fucking fuck. Fine, I’ll do it,” she groaned.

“Yes! It’ll be great, you’ll see,” Mary said.

“Everyone, hush, the match is starting!”

——————————————————————————————

“And the score is 70-30 in Gryffindor’s favor with no sign of the snitch. Cas, what do you think about these scores?” Remus asked. The game was slow, with both Keepers doing a good job of keeping the score low. 

“I think that things need to hurry up or I’m just gonna leave to take a nap.”

“Fuck you Cas!” Marlene shouted with a grin as she flew past.

“Fuck you too, Marls.”

“Miss Meadowes, please refrain from using that kind of language,” McGonagall said.

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry My Queen, Ruler of All Known Creation. May Your Majesty never be plagued by a word of mine again, lest the consequences drive a sword through mine own dastardly heart,” Dorcas replied.

“Cas?”

“Yeah, Rem?”

“That was actually kinda beautiful.”

“Oh I know. Speaking of beautiful, I think Marlene just broke a guy’s ribs,” Dorcas said over the cheers from the Gryffindor section.

“Excellently aimed bludger by Marlene McKinnon, and it does seem like Ravenclaw chaser George Weston is injured. A backup chaser is being sent in,” Remus remarked. “What do we know about him, Dorcas?”

“Hmm, who is it, oh. Oh no. Who let Barry Whittle on the same field as Sirius Black? Run, Barry. Run- and it’s too late. Sirius has sent a blunger at his head.”

“Get him, babe!”

“Remus don’t encourage violence.”

“I’ll encourage whatever the hell I want. Beat his homophobic ass, babe! Shatter his bones!”

“Sweet Jesus. Run Barry. Just go. Escape with your life while you can.”

“No, stay. I like the terrified look on your face,” Remus grinned.

“A PSA for the Ravenclaw beaters. Make sure Barry doesn’t die,” Dorcas said.

“No, let us kill him,” Sirius cried as he zipped by.

Barry was decidedly unsettled, seeing as the Quidditch match had now turned into a game of 'Can Marlene and Sirius Team Up To Kill A Man?'. 

——————————————————————————————

“A toast to the Gryffindor Quidditch team! Excellent job, mates, we’ve got this season in our hands! Quidditch Cup, here we come!” James shouted from a table. The answering cheer was deafening as the victory party in the common room raged on.

“So, what did you think of commentating, Cas?” Marlene asked from where she was sprawled across an armchair.

“It was actually fun,” Dorcas answered. “Not as hard as I thought it’d be.”

“Well, you did an excellent job,” Sirius praised from his spot on Remus’ lap. “Well done, really. How were the interviews?”

Dorcas’ blush was evident even in the low lighting of the common room. Lily threw a glance at Marlene and was met with a decidedly smug smirk.

“The interviews. Those. Yes, I did… those. They were fine. The girls mostly just talked about… brooms. And beaters' abs. I mean bats!” Dorcas stuttered.

“Beaters’… ok then. Sounds fun,” Sirius replied.

“Oh, it was,” Marlene drawled. Dorcas looked at her for a second and looked away, barely able to meet Marlene’s heated gaze.

“That reminds me, Lily, I need to talk to you and James about something,” Dorcas said, begging Lily with her eyes to help.

“Yeah, alright. JAMES!” Lily shouted. James looked over from where he was now talking to one of the chasers.

“Yeah?!” He shouted back.

“Cas needs to talk to us!” 

“Bring her over here then!”

“Right. C’mon, Cas,” Lily said, grabbing Dorcas’s arm and dragging her through the crowd.

“What’s up?” James asked when they reached him. Dorcas began to speak, but winced when a particularly loud song began to play.

“Shit, c’mon, let’s go somewhere more quiet,” James said, pulling both of them out of the common room.

Once they were in a hallway, Dorcas seemed to breathe a bit easier. Lily felt guilty that she hadn’t even noticed her friend’s discomfort.

“Better?” James questioned. Lily pushed down her guilt. It would do no good, and the situation was no longer an issue.

“Yeah, loads. Sorry to take you away from the party, you didn’t have to leave, I could’ve handled-“ Dorcas began to ramble slightly. Perhaps the situation still needed handling.

“Cas, babe, it’s not an issue. I’m sure you could’ve handled it, but you don’t need to. This is ok, and you don’t need to be embarrassed to ask to leave if it’s too loud,” Lily said. “I sometimes have to leave the room if it’s too bright. It’s not weird, it’s just that we get overwhelmed. Nothing wrong with it.”

“Yeah?” Dorcas asked hesitantly. Shyly. Lily’s heart ached for a moment. How had she missed such a big issue for her friend?

“Yeah. Now, go on, what did you need to tell us?” James asked.

“I walked in on Marlene while she was shirtless and holy fucking fuck she has washboard abs.”

——————————————————————————————

At three am, the party was over, but Lily was still awake. Tossing and turning, she just couldn’t fall asleep. Her mind was racing.

Things at Hogwarts were happening fast. And they weren’t all good. She couldn’t get Winnie Shacklebolt’s face out of her head. She had seen it before it happened in her dream. Not the exact murder, but she had dreamt of a similar scene. Why? What the hell did that mean? 

Lily looked at the clock. Realizing her attempts to go to sleep would amount to nothing, she groaned and pushed the covers off, rising from her bed.

The hallways were dark as Lily walked around. Walking through Hogwarts at night was risky, but she had been doing it since second year, and she was pretty good at knowing where the patrollers would be.

She walked aimlessly for awhile, nodding at the inhabitants of paintings she recognized, occasionally stopping to have a chat. The paintings were often ignored at Hogwarts, but they always had the best gossip, being that they were in prime positions to overhear things constantly. 

Overhearing things can be the worst curse of all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eyyy, what's up? Sorry it's been a bit. Hope you enjoyed the chapter. It's really just some filler and a lead in to the next chapter, but I liked writing some of it. Me? Projecting my innermost fears, thoughts, and insecurities on to Dorcas Meadowes? It's more likely than you think. Anyway, leave a comment and a kudos if you liked it. They're very encouraging. Oh, and I'd like to thank all of you. This fic has 995 hits at the moment. I never thought I'd get a hundred, much less almost a thousand. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a really fantastic day/night!


	20. trauma is a bitch, you know?

Lily sat in the hospital wing, staring at the floor. She didn’t move, barely blinked, barely breathed.

“Lily? Hey, babe. Please tell me what’s happening?” Marlene asked from where she was sitting beside her. “Lily?”

“She’s hasn’t spoken since she came in,” Madam Pomfrey said gently. Lily didn’t acknowledge the conversation.

“What the hell happened?” Dorcas asked. All of the girls were there, trying their hardest not to overwhelm Lily.

“I still don’t know. She hasn’t spoken. All I know is that the Headmaster is coming to speak with her,” Madam Pomfrey said before walking away.

“Dumbledore?” Alice asked. She looked at Lily. “Christ, Lils, what did you get yourself into?”

“I don’t think it was voluntary,” Mary replied. “Lily, please say something.”

Lily remained silent, not even looking at her friends. Marlene gently took her hand and placed it on her wrist. She got no response.

“Miss Evans?” Marlene heard from behind her. Dumbledore was their, McGonagall by his side. Lily looked up. “I understand something terrible has happened. Please tell me what’s wrong?”

McGonagall gestured at all the other girls. “Ladies, please wait outside until we’re done speaking with Miss Evans.”

“Professor, can’t we stay?” Dorcas asked.

“I’m sorry, but no. This should be a private matter.”

“Please, Professor-“  
“No. Now, please go wait outside.” McGonagall’s words were final. Alice huffed and left with Mary. Dorcas hesitated for a minute, casting a despairing look at Lily, but then she turned and left as well.

Marlene began to stand to go and wait with the others, but then the hand on her wrist tightened. 

“She stays,” Lily implored, looking at McGonagall. “Please.”

Marlene stared at McGonagall, silently begging for her to agree. McGonagall looked at Dumbledore, who simply nodded.

“Alright,” she allowed. “But please begin to tell us what happened.”

——————————————————————————————

 

“Hurry up, clean your robes, we have to get out of here,” Lily heard. She stopped in the hallway, not making a sound. Who else was out of bed? And why?

“Calm down. No one else is awake, we’ve got time.” A new voice said. “And besides, what would they do if they caught us? We’re faithful subjects of-“

“Not yet,” the first speaker hissed. “He hasn’t accepted us yet, and that means we can’t get caught until we get his attention. Now paint the sign and let’s go.”

“Ok, ok, god, it wouldn’t kill you to chill out.”

Lily crept closer towards where she heard the voices. Silently, carefully, she inched with her back to the wall until she could hear them just around the corner. She went stiff, heart pounding. What was that noise? It was…. It wasn’t right, somehow.

“Ok, let’s go. If this doesn’t get us somewhere, nothing will,” the second voice said decisively. Lily listened as the two ran the other directions, their footsteps fading into silence. 

Except it wasn’t entirely silent. There was a soft whimpering noise, almost too quiet to be heard. Lily got as close as she could, listening for other sounds. When she heard nothing, she rounded the corner, intent on finding the cause of the noise.

And she found it.

Lily retched pathetically at the sight. A student, an older girl, lying on the ground. Her shirt was torn open, and blood seemed to cover her body. It seeped outwards, staining the ground. 

Lily snapped out of her horror and rushed forwards. The girl was still alive, if she could stop the bleeding, if she could do something-

The girl caught sight of her. She reached out weakly with a bloody hand, grasping for some semblance of comfort. She opened her mouth, trying to speak. 

“Please,” she rasped with a hoarse voice. “Please.”

Lily sat against the wall and cradled the girl’s head in her hands. “I don’t know what to do, what should I do, how can I help, what should I-“

“Stay,” the girl whispered. “Please don’t let them come back. They said I’d die alone, I don’t want to die alone, please, please-“ her voice broke as she sobbed. She shuddered as she wept, gripping Lily’s hand as tight as she could.

Lily didn’t realize she was crying too until her teardrops landed on the girl’s forehead. “Who did this?”

“They…. They wore…masks,” the girl gasped out. “I don’t know… please stay, it hurts so much, please… I don’t want to die alone, I don’t want to die, please….”

As the girl’s quiet whimpers faded, she closed her eyes. When Lily felt her stop breathing, she sobbed, collapsing back against the wall. She shook as the tears streamed down her face.

And there she stayed until morning, when Filch found her, still crying, a massive snake coming out of a skull painted in blood on the wall above her.

——————————————————————————————

“Oh my god,” Marlene breathed out when Lily finished retelling what had happened. “Oh my god.”

“This is…. horribly disturbing,” Dumbledore said quietly.

McGonagall turned to him indignantly. “Disturbing? Albus, this is horrific. Miss Evans, do you have any idea of who could have done this?”

Lily merely shook her head, then buried her face in Marlene’s neck. Marlene wrapped her arms around her friend, shaking slightly.

Marlene couldn’t quite comprehend what was happening. It felt as though the world around her was muted, except for the muffled sobs that came from Lily. She could hear those perfectly.

“Shhh, shh, it’s ok. I’ve got you Lils, I’ve got you. Shh, it’ll be alright, it’s ok, I’m here, I’m here,” she mumbled, trying to soothe her. It seemed useless as Lily shook harder. Marlene could feel her tears on her neck.

“Professors?” She spoke up. McGonagall and Dumbledore looked at her, their mutterings interrupted. “Can I take Lily back to the dorms? She needs rest, I’m sure Madam Pomfrey would agree.”

“I do!” Pomfrey called out helpfully from her office. Marlene stared at the professors, pleading with her eyes.

“Of course. Make sure she gets some sleep,” McGonagall said tightly. Marlene nodded and sank to kneel in front of Lily.

“Lils? Hey, babe, I’m gonna get you to the dorms, ok? Do you feel like you can walk?” Lily shook her head. Marlene smiled gently. “That’s ok. I’m gonna carry you, ok, Lily?”

Lily nodded. Marlene gathered her in her arms and began to walk out.

“Miss McKinnon?” McGonagall called.

“Yes, Professor?”

“Do take care of her.”

“Of course.”

——————————————————————————————

Marlene laid Lily in her bed as gently as she could. “Lils? You alright?”

Lily nodded. Marlene waited for any other response, but she didn’t get one. She turned to leave.

“Thank you.”

Marlene spun round, facing Lily again. There was no sign of her having spoken, but Marlene had heard her. “What?”

Lily looked pained for a second but she spoke again. “Thank you, Marly.”

Marlene softened. “Any time, Lily. If you need anything, shout for me, yeah?”

Lily nodded, apparently done talking. Marlene slipped out of the room as quietly as she could.

The rest of the group was waiting for her in the common room apprehensively.

“What happened?” Alice asked.

“Is Lily ok?” James interjected.

“The others are saying someone died,” Dorcas said quietly. Her eyes seemed to drill a hole into Marlene. “Is that true?”

The others went silent as Marlene dropped her head. “Yes,” she whispered, eyes closed tightly. She continued to keep her eyes closed until she felt a hand on her arm. She looked up, meeting Dorcas’ eyes. The shorter girl wrapped her in a hug, which Marlene reciprocated after a moment.

“What happened?” Sirius asked quietly. Marlene looked at her friends, all worried. She met Dorcas’ eyes again. There was fear there, and worry, but more importantly, there was support.

And so Marlene began to tell her family what had happened.  
——————————————————————————————

“Jesus,” Remus breathed as Marlene collapsed onto the couch, emotionally drained. “Is Lily-“

“I think she’ll be ok,” Marlene said. “But she’s really torn up.”

“Of course she is, who wouldn’t be?” Dorcas replied from beside her. Marlene found herself leaning closer, seeking comfort. It appeared that her nervousness about being near her crush was canceled out by her worry. Dorcas, blissfully unaware of this, wrapped an arm around Marlene’s waist.

“Who was the girl?” Frank asked solemnly.

“I don’t know,” Marlene answered truthfully. “Lily didn’t know either.”

“This is….. Jesus Christ,” Sirius said heavily. “Isn’t Hogwarts supposed to be the safest place in the world?”

“It is,” Peter responded. “Which means the rest of the world is even worse off.”

“Don’t say that,” Mary rebuked him. “Surely, there’s somewhere safe?”

“If not here, where? You-Know-Who won’t even come near Hogwarts, he’s so afraid of Dumbledore. But now, now he’s got followers to do the dirty work for him,” James said. 

“Can we stop?” Alice asked nervously. “I mean, this is crazy. This is fucking crazy, I can’t- I’m sorry, I can’t deal with this, I’ve got to go-“ Alice stood and exited the common room hurriedly.

“Alice! Alice!” Frank called. He got up and ran after her.

Marlene looked around the room. Mary had her face in her hands while Peter tried to comfort her. Sirius was leaning heavily on Remus, who was staring at the fireplace. James was pacing, running a hand through his hair, seemingly without realizing it.

“I only told you so Lily didn’t have to,” Marlene said, looking at each of them. “She’s been through enough, I didn’t want her to have to deal with retelling it.”

“We get it,” Dorcas responded softly. She took Marlene’s hand and pressed it between her own. “We won’t bother her about it. And we won’t go talking about what happened, either.” She pulled Marlene closer, gently running her fingers up and down her arm.

Sirius stared for a second, clearly about to say something, when they were all distracted by a noise from the girls’ dorm. They looked up.

Lily was standing there. “I guess you told them?” She asked quietly, looking at Marlene. Dorcas shifted next to her, almost protectively. 

“Yes,” Marlene answered honestly. “I didn’t want you to have to tell it again.”

Lily tilted her head, thinking for a minute. “Alright,” she said. “But none of you can go spreading this around, ok?”

“We won’t,” Remus replied.

“Are you ok, Lily?” James asked quietly. Lily stared at him for a moment.

“I will be.”

——————————————————————————————

Lily sat alone in the common room. It was one in the morning, but she couldn’t sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the girl’s face. The skull and the snake on the wall. The blood, flooding the halls of Hogwarts.

Marlene and Remus had tried to stay awake with her, but eventually both had fallen asleep. Lily had carefully gotten them both up to their beds and then returned to the couch in front of the fire.

She zoned out as she watched the crackling flames. What was happening in Hogwarts? First the little girl, with mortem itineribus written on the wall, and now this. Why was she always stumbling into awful things?

“Is this seat taken?” Lily jumped upon hearing a voice. She looked up, and saw a vaguely familiar boy beside her.

“Um, no. I’m not really good company right now though,” she answered truthfully.

“That’s ok, I haven’t been for awhile,”the boy laughed sadly. He sat down. Lily looked at him for a second, trying to figure out why she recognized him.

“Wait, you were the kid that ran off after Winnie-“ Lily cut herself off, realizing what that meant. “Sorry.”

“It’s ok,” the boy responded. He stared at the fire. “Winnie was my little sister. I’m Kingsley Shacklebolt.”

“I’m so sorry, Kingsley.”

“Nah, it’s ok. It’s not like you killed her,” he said sadly. “You were the one that found her though. Do you have any idea who might have done it?”

“No,” Lily answered. Kingsley seemed to shrink a little. “I’m sorry, but I don’t know. I don’t know who’s doing any of this.”

“I know. I just hoped- well, I don’t know. I guess I wanted to hear that whoever did it would get caught,” Kingsley sighed.

“Maybe they will be,” Lily said softly. “Maybe tomorrow, they’ll figure out who’s been doing all this, and they’ll catch them.”

“Maybe,” Kingsley responded. They fell silent for awhile. “I just can’t help feeling guilty. I was supposed to protect her, to make sure she was safe.”

“You can’t blame yourself,” Lily replied. “You couldn’t have known anything would happen.”

“I still should have done better.”

“Yeah, well, join the club,” Lily replied.

“What, you feel guilty too?” Kingsley asked.

“Of course I do! I couldn’t save your sister and I couldn’t save-“ Lily cut herself off. She still didn’t even know the girl’s name.

“Beatrice,” Kingsley supplied softly. “The girl who died last night was named Beatrice.”

“I should have gotten there sooner. I could’ve-“

“What, Lily? What could you have done?” Kingsley asked.

“I could’ve stopped whoever did it!” Lily cried. “I could have saved her.”

“Lily, Beatrice was a seventh year Ravenclaw, and she was smart. She had good marks in her classes, and she was really good at Defense Against the Dark Arts. If she couldn’t save herself, you wouldn’t have been able to either,” Kingsley said quietly. “You did what you could. You made sure she didn’t die alone. Sometimes that’s all we can do, bring a little comfort at the end.” 

Lily went quiet, contemplating what had been said. Kingsley seemed to realize that she needed a moment, and he fell silent too.

“Thank you,” Lily said softly. She didn’t realize how guilty she felt until he told her she didn’t need to be.

“Of course. I probably need to go to bed,” Kingsley said, standing to leave. “And Lily?”

“Hmm?”

“Stay on guard, yeah? Somehow, Hogwarts doesn’t feel as safe anymore.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Thanks so much for reading, sorry I didn't update for a bit there. Life got busy. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I realize my introduction of Kingsley is kind of random, but I love him so much for some reason? Anyway, leave a kudos and a comment if you enjoyed it, they're very encouraging and it's so nice to hear that people enjoy this! I hope you all have a great day/night!


	21. Valentines Day? I think you mean bullshit

“You’re not gonna believe this!”

“Marly, every time you say that, I get nervous. Why do you insist on making me nervous? Why can’t you be a normal daughter?” Alice laments.

“No, Alice, I’m serious. I’m really serious,” Marlene said.

“Actually, I’m Sirius,” Sirius grinned. 

“Black, I will cut you with no hesitation.”

“Just say it Marls, god,” Dorcas said. The group looked at Marlene, with the exception of James, who had fallen asleep on the table.

It was the morning after a big Quidditch match against Ravenclaw. It had been a rough one, but Gryffindor had come out on top in the end. However, everyone was exhausted from the match. Remus hadn’t even come to breakfast, threatening that whoever tried to wake him up would suffer the consequences. Frank was also asleep, but he wasn’t so aggressive about staying that way.

“Ok, so after the match, McGonagall talked to me for a bit, remember?” Marlene began.

“Yeah?” Lily responded sleepily. “And?”

“She introduced me to a Chaser from the Holyhead Harpies. They want me to start training with them after I finish school!” Marlene announced excitedly.

“Holy shit,” Alice replied, astonished.

“Jesus, Micks, that’s amazing!” Sirius cried out, jumping up to hug her.

“Wow,” Lily said, smiling. “Marlene, that’s amazing!”

“Right? They said as long as I don’t get injured in seventh year, I could be a reserve player by the time I’m nineteen!” Marlene’s excitement was contagious, making everyone feel a little more awake.

“I never doubted you,” Dorcas said, grinning at Marlene.

“You doubted me so many times,” Marlene scoffed.

“Ok, yeah, but now I don’t, and that’s what really counts,” Dorcas countered. Marlene rolled her eyes, but she pulled Dorcas into a hug.

“Wazz goin on?” James asked blearily, waking up and trying to fix his cramped neck.

“Marlene’s got a spot on the Holyhead Harpies waiting for her,” Sirius answered.

“Well done, mate. Good- good job,” James said, his sentence punctuated by a yawn. He smiled at Marlene. 

“Potter, maybe you should go sleep before you drown in your cereal,” Lily teased. 

“But who will provide witty commentary on the day’s events?” James pouted slightly. 

“I’ve got it covered, James,” Sirius said. “Go on, get some rest, I’m not nearly as tired as you.”

“Alright, alright, fine. But wake me up later, I need to study for the Charms quiz on Monday, and this afternoon is the only time I can do it,” James replied.

“We’ll make sure you’ve got time. Now go rest, James,” Lily answered. He smiled at her and got up, slightly stumbling as he made his way out of the Great Hall.

Sirius turned to Lily. “Since when do you care about James’ health?” He asked, a mischievous smirk on his face.

“What?” Lily spluttered. “I don’t- that’s not- what are you talking about, Black?” Marlene and Dorcas stopped talking to listen.

“‘Go get some rest’? Since when do you care if he’s well-rested?” Sirius repeated.

“Oh, come on. I just didn’t want him passing out in the middle of the day,” Lily defended.

“I don’t know, you seemed pretty concerned,” Dorcas teased.

“Fuck off. I don’t know what you’re thinking, but James and I are just friends,” Lily said.

“You can be friends with someone and still want to bone them,” Marlene reasoned.

“Yeah- wait what?” Dorcas paused, looking up at Marlene. “Who do you-“

“That’s not relevant right now!” Marlene said hurriedly. “We are talking about Lily’s massive crush on James.”

“Lily has a massive crush on James?” Alice said, faking surprise. “Who could have guessed?”

“Oh fuck off,” Lily said. 

“Why are we telling people to fuck off?” Peter asked as he arrived with Mary. “Because I totally support it, but I’m a little confused.”

“Lily won’t admit she’s got feelings for James,” Marlene answered, dodging out of the way when Lily tried to punch her.

“Why not? You could do worse than James,” Mary said.

“You have him then,” Lily replied. “I would rather hear my dog bark at a crow than a man swear he loves me.”

“Isn’t that from Shakespeare?” Dorcas asked.

“How do you just know that, you absolute nerd?” Lily questioned. “Look, James is a good friend, but that’s it. That’s all we are.”

“Ok, fine. But, you have to find someone to go out with soon, because I am prepared to light Peter on fire in protest,” Sirius said.

“Protest of what?” Peter asked, alarmed.

“Of her being alone on Valentines Day, of course,” Sirius responded. “She and James are the only single ones.”

“Hey, Cas and I are single too,” Marlene chimed in.

“Actually, I….uh, I have plans for Valentines Day,” Dorcas said, avoiding Marlene’s eyes. Lily glanced at Sirius, seeing her panic reflected in his eyes.

“You do?” Marlene asked, face falling for a second before she schooled her features into something more acceptable.

“Yeah. The Hufflepuff prefect, Jack Barrow? He uh, he asked me out,” Dorcas replied.

“That’s… that’s great, Cas. He seems like a good guy, I’m sure it’ll be fun,” Marlene said.

“Yeah. Um, I should go, I have a potions essay to write and I need to get started on it. Bye,” Dorcas said, exiting quickly.

“Marls?” Lily said gently. Marlene looked up, forcing a smile.

“I guess it’s just you and me on Valentines Day, huh?” Marlene said, trying to laugh.

“Hey, who needs Valentines Day? Saint Valentine was gruesomely beheaded,” Lily replied. “We’ll sit in the common room and eat chocolate and listen to the radio and curse our singleness. It’ll be fun!”

“Yeah, sure,” Marlene said slowly. “I’m… I’m gonna go flying for a bit. I’ll be back by dinner.”

Lily turned to Sirius, Peter, and Mary as Marlene left. “Assemble the troops. We have a disaster on our hands.”

——————————————————————————————

“What’s going on? What does code red mean? Why are we having an emergency meeting?” Frank questioned. 

“Something is screwed up. Something is screwed up big time,” Alice responded.

“Given our daily life experiences, you’re gonna have to be more specific,” Remus said. 

“What’s wrong, Evans?” James asked. He seemed much more alert now.

“Dorcas is going out with a guy on Valentines Day,” Sirius answered.

“Shit,” James said. “How did I not know this?”

“She only told us just this morning,” Peter replied.

“So what do we do?” Remus asked.

“Thought you didn’t want to interfere?” Lily teased.

“I do want them to be happy together,” Remus answered. “So what do we do now, if Cas is going out with a guy?”

“I… I don’t know,” James said. “I thought something would work by now.”

“Wait, I think I’ve got it,” Mary said. All eyes turned to her. “We continue as normal. We keep up with the Quidditch plan, and we maybe start to plan the talent show, because I don’t really see the Quidditch plan going anywhere right now. We let Dorcas handle the guy thing. I don’t think that’s gonna be much of an issue.”

“How is it not an issue?” Lily asked incredulously.

“Have you seen Jack Barrow?”

A chorus of no’s rang out.

“He’s got blonde hair, blue eyes, he's kinda pale, and he’s basically a male version of Marlene,” Mary explained.

“Seriously?” James asked. “What the hell?”

“Yep. So, Dorcas is probably gonna realize pretty quickly that she only agreed because she thinks about Marlene when she sees him. So once that’s out of the way, we proceed,” Mary said. “Sound good?”

“Yeah, that’s a good plan. Nice job, Mary,” Lily responded. “Ok. So we let Cas sort out the Puff Problem-“

“Nice name for it,” James grinned.

“Thank you very much, and if Gryffindor Scores And So Does Dorcas doesn’t work out by the next match, we’ll move to the talent show. Any questions?”

“Yeah, what the fuck should we do for the talent show?” Sirius asked.

“Oh shit. Yeah, we do need other participants,” Franks said.

“Obviously, we need Dorcas in a solo act. Lily, Mary, how would you feel about being backup singers? I know you both hate singing but it’ll be fun!” Alice turned to each of them with her best puppy eyes.

“Ugh, fine,” Mary responded, rolling her eyes.

“Yeah, ok. But only so I can snoop around backstage,” Lily agreed.

“Boys, what do you say? Barbershop quartet?” James grinned, looking at the other Marauders.

“Not a barbershop quartet, but of course we’ll do something magnificent,” Sirius replied. “I get to make the costumes though.”

“No doubt,” Peter said. “But we’ll need someone in the crowd to keep an eye on Marlene.”

“I’ll do that,” Frank volunteered. “I’m not a big fan of performing, so I can watch for her reactions.”

“Then it’s settled!” Lily said, clapping her hands together. “The next Quidditch match is on, what, the day after Valentines? Next Saturday? If Dorlene isn’t together by then, we start talent show prep. We let them handle the Puff Problem, and hopefully, they’ll be together by this time next month!”

Lily should not have been so hopeful.

——————————————————————————————

“Evans, what are you doing on Valentines Day?” Lily heard as she relaxed with a book in the common room.

“Sitting in here and being an idiot with Marlene,” Lily answered, looking up from her book at James. “Why do you ask?”

“Could I maybe join you? Sirius and Remus are off doing their own thing, and so are Peter and Mary. And I don’t want to find a date,” James answered.

“Why not? From what I’ve heard, half the girls in Hogwarts would prefer if you did.”

Lily was quite sure she was indignant about Potter’s admirers because they should have better things to fantasize about. Absolutely. She didn’t get annoyed when they fawned over him because she was jealous or anything. That would be absurd. And if she was jealous, it was because James had half the population of Hogwarts tripping over themselves, whereas she couldn’t even find a date. She was jealous of James. Right. Yes.

“Yeah, well, I’m just not interested in anyone right now,” James said, running a hand through his already messy hair. “Just not in the mood, I suppose.”

“Hmm. Alright. I’ll check with Marlene, but it’s cool with me if you join us,” Lily said. “It’ll be the Sad Single Sit-down.”

“Awful name.”

“Fuck off,” Lily grinned. “Now you can’t come along.”

James smiled. “Like you don’t want me there? Come on, Evans, admit it. I’ve grown on you.”

“Yeah, the same way fungus grows on trees,” Lily countered.

“Harsh words, those are very harsh words. Do you wish to cut me at my heart, dearest Lily Evans?” James said, dramatically falling to his knees in front of her. “I beseech thee, if thou dost quarrel, say it outright, so as not to harm my trembling heart forthwith.”

Lily fought through her giggles. “Nay, good sir, I do not quarrel. Only that I have the good sense to know your parasitic presence does not forebode good health.”

James gasped, feigning indignation. “So you do quarrel! Well-“ he grabbed a pillow, bringing it over his head. “This is a quarrel you won’t win, fair lady!” He threw the pillow at Lily.

She laughed, dodging and grabbing her own pillow. She ducked around James and hit him in the back of the head. “Suck on that, Potter!”  
“Get back here, Evans!”

In their excitement, neither of them noticed Dorcas or Marlene coming in.

——————————————————————————————

“Did you-“

“See that?” 

“Oh my god they’re so idiotic,” Dorcas laughed as they ran back into the hallway. 

“Right? I mean, do they even realize they have feelings for each other?” Marlene asked.

“God, I hope so. Hey, wait, aren’t you hanging out with Lily on Valentines Day?”

“Yeah?”

“You should try to get information from her. Figure out if she knows about her own crush!” Dorcas exclaimed.

“How would she not know? Can you even be that oblivious about your own feelings?” Marlene asked skeptically. Although, at the moment, she would do anything to be oblivious to her.

“I mean, yeah. You can develop feelings for someone and not realize it,” Dorcas answered.

“Is that what happened with you and Jack Barrow?” Marlene asked before she could stop herself.

“What? I don’t- what?” Dorcas stuttered. “Why do you want to know?”

“Is it so strange that I want to know things about your life, Dorcas?” Marlene replied.

“Well, no, but you don’t like talking about feelings. At least I thought that.”

“No, I just- I guess I’m just a bit jealous, is all.”

Dorcas went silent.

‘Great job, idiot. You really managed to fuck that up even more, huh? I can picture your gravestone now: Marlene McKinnon; so incredibly gay and stupid that she made things almost 100% worse. She won’t be missed.’ Marlene thought bitterly.

“What are you jealous of?” Dorcas asked quietly.

“Er, well….I guess I’m jealous of you?”

‘What the entire fuck, McKinnon?’ She thought almost instantly.

“Jealous of me?” Dorcas responded. “Don’t tell me you’re straight for Jack Barrow. He’s decent-looking, Marls, but he’s not worth all that.”

“No, I’m… I guess I just wish someone would ask me out, you know? It’s been forever since I enjoyed myself on a date,” Marlene explained.

‘Solid save, McKinnon. You’re not hopeless after all.’ She congratulated herself in her mind.

“What about our date? Didn’t you enjoy that?” Dorcas teased.

‘And you’re hopeless. A useless pining lesbian.’ Marlene blushed heavily.

“Of course I enjoyed that, but I meant a real date. I just miss people being interested in me, that’s all.” 

“Oh, Marls,” Dorcas said sympathetically. “I’m sure someone out there will ignore your garbage personality and date you anyway.”

“Thanks, asshole,” Marlene snickered, shoving at Dorcas’ shoulder. Dorcas grinned.

“No but honestly, they’re idiots if they can’t see what they’re missing. You’ll find someone.”

“Yeah,” Marlene replied, smiling. “Thanks, Cas.”

“Anytime.”

——————————————————————————————

“And Frank Longbottom blocks another attempt by the Slytherins. Dorcas, any gossip about Frank?” Remus asked idly.

It was the Gryffindor versus Slytherin quidditch match, but honestly, Lily thought it was a little anticlimactic. Tensions had been running high all week, but Gryffindor was absolutely destroying Slytherin now that the match had started.

“Well, Remus, Frank is a dork. Don’t let his rugged appearances fool you, he’s an absolute sweetheart. Alice did not give me a script to talk about Frank at all. She would never do such a thing. I should remind all of you that Frank is dating Alice quite happily, and if your name is Emily Raleigh you should stop flirting with him and- Alice I can’t say any of this out loud.” Dorcas said, reading from a sheet of paper. “I mean, my god, this is so violent. I’m not saying this.”

“Coward!” Alice shouted from her place in the stands next to Lily.

“Right, well, anyway… an excellently aimed bludger from Marlene McKinnon. Do we have any gossip about her, Dorcas?” Remus said, trying to subtly bait her.

“Hmmm. Do I embarrass her, or do I compliment her? Choices, choices,” Dorcas mused. She ducked as a bludger came frighteningly close to the commentator’s booth.

“Try it, Meadowes, I dare you!” Marlene screamed as she flew by.

“Shut up, you freakishly tall bitch!” Dorcas shouted back.

“Can you save the bickering for later?” Remus asked.

“No, it’s much more fun like this- hey, is James diving for the snitch?”

“Oh shit!” Remus cried, jumping up. “Gryffindor seeker James Potter dives for the snitch. And he’s absolutely going to crash. Oh my god, James, what the hell-“

“He’s got it! He’s got it!” Lily shouted over the deafening cheer from Gryffindor.

“James Potter, moron extraordinaire, has caught the snitch, winning the match for Gryffindor with a score of 240 to 60. Nice job, but you’re still an asshole,” Dorcas said.

“Biased commentary!” James shouted.

“You mean accurate?”

——————————————————————————————

“So, what did you think of the match, Evans?” James asked at breakfast the next morning.

“Meh, it was alright. A little boring,” Lily replied, knocking aside a floating heart to reach for the milk.

Valentines Day had arrived, and the Great Hall had become a slightly revolting explosion of color as a result. Tiny pink and red hearts made of paper fluttered about, and cherubs floated throughout paintings, thoroughly annoying their inhabitants.

“Wow. Boring, huh?” James scoffed. “It was a clean knockout! We were amazing!”

“Uh huh,” Lily teased. “I’m sure.”

“You, Evans, are the absolute worst,” James replied.

“How cutting.”

“I know, I felt a little bad saying it. Oh, also, be prepared for something truly ridiculous in a few minutes.”

“What did you do?” Lily asked, already fearing the worst.

“Nothing bad! You know how Sirius and I are big feminists?”

“It kinda doesn’t count if you say it about yourself, but ok.”

“Whatever, Evans. Anyway, we were thinking, and Valentines Day is kind of shitty. I mean, if you do have a boyfriend, he could be a complete douche most of the time, but if he does good on Valentines Day, he’s romantic and you’re lucky to have him. If you don’t have a boyfriend, you end up thinking about why you’re single and you spiral into self-hatred, and that sucks,” James explained.

“Ok, yeah. That’s true. And very feminist of you, well done,” Lily said.

“Thanks. But anyway, we felt kinda bad about all the girls who have boyfriends who only treat them right on Valentines Day, so we decided to send a message. Of sorts.”

“A message?” Lily asked skeptically.

“Yep. And it’s gonna start any second, so just… give us a head start before you start dishing out detentions,” James grinned.

“Fair enough- what the hell is that thing?”

A giant flying….baby? Cherub thing? Was flying through the Great Hall. It settled hovering in the air just a few feet above Dumbledore.

“Excellent,” James said. “It’s even more ugly than I thought.”

“That’s the-“

“Yep. Give it a second, give it a second- yes!” James said excitedly as the ugly cherub opened it’s mouth. To Lily and the other students’ horror, it began to sing.

“Girls of Hogwarts, listen close  
I’ll tell you something you should know.  
If he doesn’t treat you right,  
That should be a big red light.

If he’s only sweet on Valentines Day,  
Then it’s time for some foul play.  
Do whatever you have to do,  
Just let him know he don’t deserve you.

And if you’re single, don’t you cry.  
You’re much better than some random guy.  
You can be happy by yourself  
Guys all look like ugly elves.

Now that I’ve told you all of this,  
I hope my advice will bring you bliss.”

Lily’s mouth fell open in shock. James was sniggering beside her, outright laughing at the ugly elves line. As the cherub finished his song, girls across the room began to clap, some of them making direct eye-contact with their suddenly nervous boyfriends.

“That’s… that was… actually kind of brilliant,” Lily said, still stunned.

“Yeah?” James asked. “No detentions?”

“No detentions,” Lily smiled. “In fact, that was really good. Who came up with the song?”

“The song was mostly Remus. Peter and I did most of the enchanting. That’s actually a pillow we transfigured and animated,” James explained.

“Really? How’d you manage-“

“Are you two seriously nerding out over our musical cherub?” Sirius called from down the table.

“It’s interesting!” Lily shouted back, meeting James’ eyes with a grin.

——————————————————————————————

“Lily, can we go to the kitchens and get chocolate?” Marlene asked as she slumped onto the couch. “I want snacks.”

“Yeah, alright. Out of curiosity, should our visit to the kitchens be at the same time Jack shows up to get Dorcas?” Lily asked.

“Are you accusing me of having an ulterior motive?” Marlene asked indignantly. Lily looked at her sternly. She sank back into the cushions, grumbling slightly. “Ok yeah.”

“Ok, hon. Hey, is it ok if James hangs out with us?” Lily asked, realizing she hadn’t checked with Marlene.

“Yeah, but I kinda wanted to grumble about Doras not liking me,” Marlene answered.

“You still can,” Lily responded thoughtlessly.

“What? No I can’t. He’s like best friends with her, he’d tell her about it,” Marlene said.

“Oh, yeah, ok. Just grumble when we’re in the kitchens I guess,” Lily suggested, trying to cover her mistake.

“Yeah, ok. Hey Lils?”

“Yeah babe?”

“I’m sorry,” Marlene said quietly.

“What the hell for?” Lily questioned, sitting beside Marlene and grabbing her wrist.

“I know I’ve been complaining a lot, and it’s not fun to be around someone who’s just upset all the time. You could have been doing something fun today, but instead you’re listening to me being annoying,” Marlene explained sadly.

“Marls,” Lily sighed, pulling her friend into a hug. “You’re such a dumbass.”

“What?”

“Of course I’m here listening to you complain. You’re like, my favorite person. Where else would I be?”

“Yeah. Thanks, Lily,” Marlene replied.

“Plus, your issues are my best source of entertainment.”

“Ok fuck off.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, look, an update! Really though, I hope you enjoyed that chapter. It's not really my best, but it's build-up for what comes next. Or soon. Anyway, thank you so much for reading, and if you liked it, please leave a kudos and a comment, they're hella encouraging. Have a good day/night!


	22. Are things resolved? Fuck no

“So, I’ve decided what to do with my life.”

“Lily, we all know you want to be a Healer. It’s pretty damn obvious,” Alice replied, not looking up from her notes. “Now shut up and let me study. Remus, do you have the Herbology notes from Wednesday?”

“No, Alice. Being a Healer is not what I want to do with my life,” Lily replied loudly. “You wanna know what the right answer is?”

“Do I have a choice?”

“Not at all,” Lily grinned. “I have decided to be a full time dumbass. A lot of thought went into this decision, and I’m proud to report that not only have I officially given up, I have accepted my new career as a dumbass. I’m excited for the change and the new opportunities this will bring.”

“You failed the Arithmancy test, didn't you?” Remus asked.

“I came to magic school to avoid doing math! Not to study it!”

“Tough luck, Red. How does it feel to be a plebeian like the rest of us?” Sirius asked from his spot on Remus’ lap.

“Pretty fucking awful, Black,” Lily replied. “Hey, does anyone know where Marlene is? She’d support my idiocy.”

“She and James are out on the quidditch field,” Frank answered, pausing his studying with Peter and Mary. “Something about needing someone to hit a bludger at.”

“Ok, fine, where’s Dorcas?” Lily asked exasperatedly.

“Why do you think Marlene needed to hit someone with a bludger?” Mary responded. At Lily’s blank look, she sighed. “She’s on a date with Tall, Blond, and Blandsome, Lily.”

“We really can’t keep calling him that. I almost fucked up and said it to his face,” Peter said.

“First of all, that would have been hilarious. Secondly, we’re not gonna stop calling him that. Thirdly, Lily, if you’re gonna be a full-time dumbass, you’re at least gonna be a supportive full-time dumbass. Go talk Marlene out of murdering someone,” Sirius said.

“Already on it. You owe me child support though,” Lily answered.

“What? I paid for this month already!”

“This is for the injuries I’ll receive from trying to talk her down,” Lily explained.

“Ugh, fine. Three chocolate biscuits?”

“Double it, bitch.”

——————————————————————————————

“Marlene! James!” Lily shouted to no avail. The Quidditch players were high above her, and they seemed busy, James flying frantically back and forth to dodge the bludgers Marlene was furiously hitting.

“James Potter, you bloody tosser, get your fat head down here!” Lily screamed. She sighed when, yet again, she got no response.

“Bloody fucking Quidditch players, flying around, not a care in the bloody world..” She groused, climbing up the stands. “MARLENE MCKINNON, IF YOU DON’T GET YOUR ASS OVER HERE IN HALF A SECOND I WILL DRAG YOU OUT OF YOUR BED AND DUMP YOU IN THE LAKE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT! DON’T TEST ME, YOU BITCH!”

“What the three-quarters of a fuck, Lily?” Marlene asked as she landed beside her.

“Only three-quarters of a fuck? I thought it deserved a full fuck.”

“Nah, you’ve used that threat before, so you got points taken off,” Marlene replied.

“Boo, you whore,” Lily said. “Also, why didn’t you tell me Dorcas had a date today?”

“Dorcas is on another date with Tall, Blond, And Blandsome?” James asked as he landed beside them. “Ew, why?”

“That’s what I said!” Lily exclaimed.

“Ok, stop calling him that, his name is Jack,” Marlene interjected.

“Really? Shit, I thought it was John,” Lily said.

“Ok, look. I’m not a huge fan of him either, he’s boring. I mean, really, who spends the first date talking about career options? But he seems to make Dorcas happy, and that’s what’s important,” Marlene stated. Her words were hesitant, as though it was taking effort to draw them out.

“Yeah, but I keep thinking she’d be happier with someone else, maybe.” Lily decided to just throw subtlety out the window. This was getting annoying, and she really was peeved that she had failed the Arithmancy test.

“Lily..” Marlene replied, glaring. “I know what you’re trying to say, and stop. That’s not… it’s not gonna happen, ok?”

“It could though!”

“But it won’t. Just drop it, ok?” Marlene shook her head before hopping back on to her broom and flying off.

“Man, this lesbian shit is intense,” James remarked.

“Yeah. I’ll try and get to the bottom of- what happened to your shoulder?” Lily looked in horror. 

“Dislocated it,” James grimaced. “Was too slow flying away from one of the bludgers. I underestimated how hard Marlene hit it. She was horrified, but neither of us know how to heal, and it doesn’t really hurt that much-“

“Sit down,” Lily instructed, pointing at the bench beside her. James sat obediently. “Why did you even keep going I you were hurt?” She asked as she pulled out her wand.

“Marlene was really upset, and Quidditch is one of the few things that really helps her when she’s upset. If we had stopped then, she would have still been angry, and a bit guilty. This way, she managed to work her emotions off, and it really doesn’t hurt that bad- Jesus fucking christ, Evans!” James swore loudly as Lily used a spell to set his shoulder straight.

“Yeah, sorry, I thought it might be easier with no warning,” Lily said apologetically.

“Yeah, ok. Thanks, Lily,” James said quietly, massaging his shoulder. “So, any idea on how to advance Dorlene?”

“I guess just stick with the plan. We’ve gotten close before, maybe this time it’ll work out.”

“Are we even sure we should be doing this?” James mused. Lily turned from where she was watching the low sun to look at him.

“What do you mean?”

“Do we even know that they’d be good for each other? And isn’t it a little childish? Focusing so much on setting up our friends when there’s a war going on, and it’s made it’s way into Hogwarts?”

“Wow. Anything on your mind, Potter?” Lily teased. James flushed slightly. Lily couldn’t help but note how good it looked in the light of the sunset.

“Maybe. I don’t know, it’s just..”

“Crazy.”

“Yeah.”

“I know,” Lily said gently. “The things that are happening in Hogwarts; the sign of the snake, mortem itineribus in, it all seems like the end of the world. And maybe it is. Maybe this is all we’ve got and we won’t wake up tomorrow.”

“Real inspiring speech, Evans,” James remarked.

“I know. Look, we might die as soon as we graduate. We might die before then. Hell, Marlene might come back and knock both of our heads clean off with a bludger.” James snickered. “But James?”

“Yeah?”

“We’re not dead yet. And we have right now.”

James smiled. “Who knew you could be profound, Evans?”

“Fuck off, Potter,” she laughed. “And for the should we set up Dorlene question, the answer is yes for one absolute reason.”

“What’s that?”  
“Marlene makes Dorcas bigger, and Dorcas makes Marlene trusting,” Lily answered.

“What the fuck Evans. I can deal with your ‘life is lived in the present’ bullshit, but what the fuck does that mean?”

“Have you ever noticed Dorcas shrinking?”

“Again, Evans, what the fuck-“

“When Dorcas feels scared, or overwhelmed, or anxious, she sort of…. curls into herself. It’s not that noticeable, but if you’ve seen Dorcas completely comfortable, you can start to see the differences.”

“I hadn’t really noticed,” James responded. “I should have known that.”

“I only know because she’s been my friend for six years, Potter, it’s not exactly the most obvious thing in the world. But the point is, she does it to avoid attention. But when she’s with Marlene-“

“She doesn’t do it?”

“Bingo. She’s not scared when she Marlene by her side,” Lily said simply.

“And the making Marlene more trusting thing?”

“That’s pretty easy to explain. Marlene doesn’t really trust people. Her parents were kind of invasive when she was a kid, and she grew up learning new ways to hide things and keep secrets. She only completely trusts 4 people, and honestly, I’m not sure about one of them. She doesn’t show emotions, or at least she tries not to. She’ll laugh and joke all day, but she’s cried in front of someone else a total of two times, and both times it was me and Sirius.”

“How do I just not know about our friends’ emotional issues?” James remarked.

“You’re an oblivious moron?”

“Rude. At least I’m not a red-head.”

“Ok you know what-“ Lily shoved him away, laughing. “Wait, I was building up to something. You made me lose my grin of thought, you bastard.”

“Something about Marlene being untrusting?”

“Right, yes, thank you. Marlene doesn’t trust people. But with Dorcas, it’s never even a question. She trusts her with everything.”

“So Marlene makes Dorcas feel brave, and Dorcas makes Marlene feel safe?” James asked. 

“Yep.”

“That’s fucking poetic,” James remarked.

“I know, right? So yeah, they definitely need to be together. They’re just… right, you know? Like Sirius and Remus, or Alice and Frank.”

“Yeah, I get it Evans.”

The two fell silent, watching as the sun set, bathing the castle and its surroundings in golden light.

“James?” Lily said quietly.

“Yeah?”

“Do you mind if we stay here for a bit? It’s really nice.”

“If you can stand my company, Lily, we can stay for as long as you want,” James answered, just as softly. Neither of the two was willing to break the soothing hush. 

“Thanks,” Lily said. After a few moments, she scooted closer, leaning against James and resting her head on his shoulder. It felt different, somehow, than when she did the same thing with Remus and Sirius. Lily tried to ignore that thought, unwilling to find out what it meant.

Thoughts could be interpreted tomorrow.

They weren’t dead yet, and they had right now.

——————————————————————————————

Lily decided to put her thought-interpreting session on hold. Just this once.

“Common room sleepover, tonight,” Sirius said as soon as he sat down to breakfast. “Be there or be a fucking lame whore.”

“I’m already a lame whore,” Marlene groaned from where her head was buried in her arms. The heavy bags under her eyes seemed to weigh down her entire face as she yawned.

“The hell are you so tired for, Micks?”

“Oh yeah, that’s my bad,” Dorcas said casually, dropping into the seat beside Lily. “Marls, honey, you should eat some breakfast, you’ll need energy after last night.”

“I….what…..what exactly happened last night?” Sirius questioned. 

“I kinda kept her up pretty late,” Dorcas replied casually.

It was now taking everything Lily had not to explode, and Sirius wasn’t faring much better.

“We were just talking, I shouldn’t be this tired,” Marlene groaned. Sirius let out an almost audible sigh of disappointment. Lily felt herself deflate. She had really thought for a second that maybe some progress had been made.

“Yeah, well, you were out hitting bludgers before that, so you can’t really blame yourself,” Dorcas smiled. She got up, moving to sit next to Marlene. “Hey.”

“Hey?” Marlene mumbled. “Why’re you over here?”

“To make sure you eat. C’mon, just have a few bites.”

“I’ll eat, ‘m just tired right now,” Marlene said, slurring her words slightly. Lily went from amused to slightly concerned. Marlene had pulled all-nighters before, and she was never this tired afterwards. Even with the time on the quidditch field, she shouldn’t be this exhausted.

“Marlene? Babe, are you sure you’re ok?” Lily asked.

“Mhm. Just need…small nap,” Marlene replied, her eyes half closed. She was swaying in her seat until Dorcas steadied her, pulling Marlene into her and keeping an arm wrapped around her.

“Ok, how about we let you have a break for the day and get you up to the-“

“Dorcas?”

Lily turned. There, in all his slight mediocrity, was Jack Barrow.

“Jack, hey!” Dorcas replied, sounding surprised. “What’s up?”

“I was just wondering if maybe you’d like to go for a walk after classes?”

Lily wanted to hate him for interrupting the moment, but honestly, she couldn’t. He was so oblivious to what he was interrupting, she almost couldn’t blame him for the obstacle he represented.

Almost.

“Actually, I need Dorcas’ help on the Charms homework,” she said, trying to sound apologetic. “Maybe you two could hang out tomorrow?”

“Oh, uh, sure,” Jack stuttered. “Of course. Tomorrow sounds lovely.” He ambled off, clearly confused.

“Lily,” Dorcas said. “Why didn’t you tell me you needed help in Charms?”

“I, uh…”

“She doesn’t need help in charms. Wants to stop the date,” Marlene yawned before slumping onto the table, succumbing to sleep. Dorcas carefully arranged her so she wouldn’t wake up with a neck cramp before looking at Lily.

“What? Why? Do you not like Jack?” Dorcas asked. “You should have said something, I wouldn’t go out with him if you didn’t like him.”

“What? No, I… I like Jack, he’s alright. I’m just, uh…” Lily hesitated, struggling to come up with an excuse. “Trying to look out for you?”

“What are you talking about?” Dorcas asked.

“I just don’t think he’s right for you. He’s bland, and you should be with someone exciting.”

“Yeah,” Sirius chimed in. “The blond cardboard cutout isn’t gonna work for you, hon.”

“What if I like being bored? Maybe I don’t want someone exciting, it’s a lot more effort,” Dorcas retorted.

“You need someone who makes you feel brave. You know how it feels, when you’re on a roller coaster, and it’s about to drop? How your stomach flips, but you know you’re gonna love it? You need someone who makes you feel like that,” Lily explained as though it was a simple fact.

Sirius stared at her. “Damn, Red, who’d have guessed you’re as poetic as James?”

“Fuck off, we both know I’m better than him,” Lily laughed. She looked back at Dorcas. She was gazing at Marlene as though she’d never seen her before. “Cas, did you even listen to me?”

“Yeah, I did,” Dorcas said softly. “Could you and James come meet me in the kitchens at lunch?”

“Who’s going where?” Marlene mumbled groggily as she woke up. Dorcas smiled at her as she shook her head slightly, trying to shake off the grasp her sleepiness had on her.

“You’re going up to the dorm room to get some rest, honey,” she said tenderly. “Come on, let’s get you to bed.”

“Mkay,” Marlene replied, following Dorcas out of the Great Hall.

“They are so far gone for each other,” Sirius said as he watched them leave.

“I know,” Lily responded. “You and Remus are gonna have some competitors for the cutest couple in Hogwarts.”

“Yeah right, bitch. That title is always gonna be ours.”

——————————————————————————————

“You absolute whore, how dare you make me realize just how much I want Marlene!” Dorcas said furiously, pointing at Lily as she and James entered the kitchen.

“Well, that wasn’t my intention,” Lily replied. “I was trying to explain why Jack isn’t right for you!”

“What happened exactly?” James asked.

“I told Dorcas that she should be with someone and exciting, and to nobody’s surprise, she took that to mean Marlene.”

“Oh. Ok, why is that an issue?” James asked.

“Because I’m dating Jack!” Dorcas cried out. “I’m supposed to be daydreaming about him, not her! I’m supposed to blush when he says nice things to me, not when she does! I’m supposed to think of him when I hear a sweet song on the radio, not sneak a glance at her!”

“Cas?” Lily asked hesitantly when she had finished. “Is there something else going on?”

“What do you mean?” Dorcas tried to backtrack.

“Cassie, we’re two of the people who know you best. You’re shit at hiding things from us, just say it,” James said exasperatedly.

“It’s not… it’s not important guys,” Dorcas muttered.

“Dorcas, come on. Just tell us?” Lily asked.

“I guess I just…. Am I kind of cheating on him? Remus and I have been talking, you know, about being bi and stuff, and we’ve talked about the stereotypes and all that, and I know it’s like, an idea, that bi people will cheat on whoever they’re dating. And I don’t want to be like that. What if someday, I date Marlene, and then I cheat on her? What if I’m being a stereotype?” Dorcas seemed distraught, pacing around the kitchen.

Lily glanced at James. She wasn’t quite sure how to handle this one. She liked both girls and boys, but choosing not to use a label meant that she wasn’t as aware of stereotypes about certain sexualities. She had never been made to feel guilty about who she was attracted to, but she imagined the pain of it was awful.

“Dorcas, that’s not what’s happening, ok?” James said, trying to get Dorcas to stop pacing. “You’re not cheating on Jack.”

“Well, isn’t she?” Lily mused. James looked at her blankly. “I mean, cheating isn’t just kissing someone else, there’s probably some emotional component to it, right?”

“See?” Dorcas pointed at Lily. “She gets it!”

“Ok, then break up with him,” James responded. “If you know you’d rather be with Marlene, then end it with Jack.”

“But why should I ruin an easy thing over something that’ll never happen?” Dorcas asked. “Jack is sweet. He’s a bit boring, but he’s kind. He’s not the funniest, but he’s hardworking.”

“Why does it sound like you’re trying to convince yourself?” Lily replied.

“Look, maybe he’s just shy. I’m gonna go on a few more dates with him. If it turns out he’s just entirely too dull, then I’ll break it off. If it gets better, then I’ll keep going out with him.”

“Ok, that’s reasonable. But what are you gonna do about Marlene?” James asked.

“She doesn’t think of me like that anyway, it won’t matter,” Dorcas said sadly. “Eventually I’ll get over it and she’ll never need to know.”

“Or, you could take a chance and tell her,” James suggested.

“Pfft, yeah right. Nice joke, James,” Dorcas replied sarcastically. “No way in hell am I doing that.”

“Ugh, fine, you overdramatic whore. Suffer in silence,” Lily responded. “But I’ve got to go, I have an essay for potions to work on.”

“Oh shit, I need help on that,” James said. “Evans, would you mind-“

“Of course I’ll help you James, you know you can ask me for anything,” Lily said unthinkingly. As she turned to leave, she missed Dorcas’ wide eyes and James’ blush.

——————————————————————————————

“So, for the draught of living death, the properties in the asphodel affect the infusion of wormwood how, exactly?” James asked.

“Well, basically-“ Lily stopped short. Everything around her was suddenly muddled. Her vision began to go blurry at the edges. James’ voice suddenly sounded like he was talking while she was underwater.

“Lily? Lily!” James got louder as he noticed Lily starting to hyperventilate. “What’s wrong, what’s happening-“

He looked around and saw it. Blood on the wall, faded but still visible, in the shape of a snake coming out of a skull.

“Ok, Evans, let’s sit down, alright?” When he got no response from Lily, he gently maneuvered her to sit back against a wall. He crouched in front of her to block the image from her vision.

“Lily, If you can hear me, grab my hand, ok? Just grab my hand,” James said, trying to sound as calm as he could. He waited for a few seconds, and got no response. He moved to go find help when Lily’s hand shot out, gripping his own tightly.

“Don’t leave,” Lily rasped out between breaths. “Please don’t leave, please, don’t leave me, please-“

“Ok. Ok, Lily, I’m not leaving,” James reassured her. Her hands were sweating, but he refused to let go. “I’m gonna count to ten, ok? I’m just gonna count to ten, over and over. I’m gonna inhale on one, and exhale on two, and keep going like that, ok? When you can, count with me, ok?”

James began to count after he saw Lily nod. He took deep breaths, trying to encourage her to imitate him. After he counted about three times, Lily’s breathing began to slow down. After five times, she started to count with him.

“Five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten,” she rattled off in a shaky voice. But she was breathing normally, and she flashed a small smile at James. He couldn’t help but notice how pretty she still looked. 

‘Bad James,’ he scolded himself in his mind. ‘Lily is your friend, and she just had a panic attack. You’ve got more important things to think about.’

“Sorry about that,” Lily said. “I’ve managed to avoid this corridor, since the…. the murder, but I guess it just all came back when I saw the blood.”

“Nothing to be sorry for, Evans, it’s not your fault,” James answered sincerely. “But, have you considered talking to Madam Pomfrey about this? PTSD isn’t exactly something you can just get over, and it sounds like you might be suffering from it.”

“I’ve… thought about it. But I’d be making a big deal over nothing. I mean, I was coping just fine when I wasn’t going into this hallway-“

“Coping isn’t recovering, Lily,” he replied gently. “You should talk to her. Avoiding the issue won’t resolve it.”

“Yeah,” Lily said slowly. “Yeah, you’re right.”

“Of course I am, Evans, it’s me we’re talking about.”

“Egomaniac.”

“Nerd.”

“You better run, Potter.”

“Put your wand down- oh god!”

——————————————————————————————

“Guys guys guys guys I have amazing news!” Alice burst into the common room.

“Who killed Snape?” Sirius asked excitedly.

“That’s not the good news,” Alice rolled her eyes.

“You’ve found the truth of our lord and savior, Jesus Christ?” Dorcas guessed. Lily high-fived her.

“Fuck yeah, muggle culture. But for real, what’s the good news?” Lily asked.

“Our Most Magical and Majestic Queen, McGonagall-“

“Praise the Goddess’ name!” Sirius called.

“Praise the Goddess, almighty McGonagall!” The group answered.

“-has decreed a new event here in dear old Hogwarts: a school-wide talent show! She’s only just announced it, and it’s gonna be four weeks from now. Anyone can audition!”

“That’s crazy. It can only end horribly. So, what’s our act gonna be?” Sirius asked, looking at the Marauders.

“Queen, obviously. I know you’ve wanted to be Freddie Mercury, now’s your best shot,” James answered.

“Yeah, ok, works for me,” Peter shrugged. “I can play drums.”

“Lily, Mary, would you do backup if I sang?” Alice asked. “I know neither of you like performing, but I need someone to back me.”

“Yeah, alright,” Lily agreed. 

“It’ll be fun,” Mary nodded. “Can I design the costumes?”

“Of course,” Alice replied.

“Wait, what about me and Marlene?” Dorcas asked.

“Oh, I figured you’d want to do a solo act,” Alice feigned surprise. “Would you rather be with us?”

“You should go solo,” Marlene spoke up. Dorcas turned to her. “I mean, I’m not doing anything, I’ve got no talents, but you’re fantastic at singing. You should do something on your own.”

“Yeah? Would you be there to cheer me on?” Dorcas asked. 

“Obviously. And besides, Jack will really like it,” Marlene answered. Lily swore internally. Why’d Marlene have to bring up Jack?

“Right. Jack,” Dorcas replied, as though she was trying to remember the name. “I’m sure he’ll enjoy it.”

“Dorcas, you should let me help you manage your act,” Sirius said, trying to change the topic.

“Are you really sure you have the personality for management?” Dorcas asked skeptically.

“Ok, listen, I have endless energy and untapped reservoirs of style and sarcasm. Do you know how many basic bitches would kill to have the same personality as me?” Sirius said.

“Sweet Jesus,” Remus mumbled with his head buried in his hands.

“Good god, ok, you’re hired,” Dorcas said, shaking her head.

“Yay!”

“This is gonna be a shit-show,” Lily muttered.

“What do you mean, Evans? This is gonna be awesome,” James grinned. 

Lily couldn’t help but smile back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow, look, an update! Who'd have guessed? I know this chapter was mostly fluff and a little hurt/comfort, but next chapter is gonna have a bit of plot, I promise. I am actually working towards something, but since the war is just starting, everyone is still a little confused, and no one knows exactly what's going on or what to investigate. I promise it'll eventually make sense. Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed that chapter. If you did, please leave a comment and kudos, I love interacting with you guys and I love to hear what your thoughts are. Hope you have a good day/night, and thanks for reading!


	23. Lily Evans Is Very Tired

“Listen up fives, a ten is speaking.”

“Sirius, my darling, my favorite person, my handsome, wonderful boyfriend?”

“Yes, Remus?”

“Fuck yourself up the ass with a wooden stake so it gives you splinters on the way out.”

“Holy fucking christ,” Lily gaped, staring at Remus. “What in the everloving hell, Lupin?”

“Damn, Remus is insulting goals,” Alice remarked.

“I was scared and I wasn’t even the target,” Marlene replied.

“You should hear what he says when you wake him up,” James said.

“I’m tired, you blithering arseholes. Shut up,” Remus muttered, but he was smiling slightly.

The first few days after a full moon always had the heaviest toll on Remus, especially in the mornings. Lily reminded herself to grab him some chocolate from the kitchens later.

“We’re all stuck in double D.A.D.A today, aren’t we?” James asked. A chorus of groans was heard.

“We’re just gonna be reading from the textbook, why even bother showing up?” Dorcas complained.

“Don’t we have that class with Hufflepuff? Gonna stare at your boy from afar, Dorcas?” Alice teased.

Dorcas reddened. “No, that’s not… no.”

“Alice, you literally missed a week of notes because you stared at Frank during every class, I don’t think you have room to talk,” Marlene countered. 

The group jeered and laughed, but none of them missed Dorcas squeezing Marlene’s hand in thanks.

“I do not want to deal with Rein today,” James whined. “He’s so….awful.”

“And racist,” Lily said quietly. Dorcas shot her a look that clearly said to shut up, but it was too late.

“Racist? What do you mean?” Sirius asked.

“She was probably just exaggerating, guys,” Dorcas responded. “What’s everyone got for the first class?”

“No, what are you talking about?” Alice asked. “Has he done anything racist? How did we not notice this?”

“Because Dorcas never talks about her issues,” Marlene replied. “It is you he’s being racist to, isn’t it?”

“It’s really not a big deal guys, he hasn’t actually done anything,” Dorcas tried again to stop the conversation.

“Oh, yeah, cuz accusing you of cheating constantly isn’t doing anything, right,” Lily replied sarcastically.

“He what?” James asked.

“It’s not a big deal, guys, he’s just an asshole, he hasn’t actually done any harm,” Dorcas muttered.

“He accused you of cheating? Why?” Frank asked.

“Apparently he doesn’t believe ‘people like me’ can get all A’s without cheating,” Dorcas answered, finally giving up on avoiding the topic. “Apparently, he’s never met a black student who was on the same level as others.”

“That’s bullshit,” Remus said. “You’re one of the smartest people I know.”

“Yeah, and I know that, so Rein being an idiot isn’t a big deal, you guys. It’s ok,” Dorcas responded. “Can we just drop it?”

“We’re not just gonna let this go, Cassie,” Sirius replied.

“Yeah, Rein can’t just get away with that,” Peter interjected.

“Look, guys, I’m not happy about it either, but there’s nothing we can do about it, ok?”

“We could-“

“No. We’re all gonna forget about this, ok?” 

“But-“

“Ok?” Dorcas stared James down. “None of you are gonna risk getting in trouble for this shit. It’s mine to deal with, so I’ll handle it. Got it?”

James stood defiant for a few seconds before deflating under her gaze. “Fine.”

“Good. Now, Peter, how the hell did you figure out the herbology essay?”

As the conversation went back to regular issues, the group seemed to slip back into the sleepiness of the early morning. 

Except for Marlene, who was suddenly nowhere to be found.

——————————————————————————————

“Guys, I’ve found the perfect song for us to do for the talent show!” Alice burst into the common room during their free period.

“Ok, what have you got?” Lily asked, putting her quill and History of Magic homework away.

“It’s gonna be ABBA.”

“Alice no.”

“Alice yes!”  
“I hate ABBA,” Mary groaned. “Their songs get stuck in my head for weeks and I never actually remember the words so it’s just the chorus on repeat forever.”

“Ok that’s true but come on guys!” Alice tried to rally them. “It’ll be fun!”  
“Which song?” Lily asked resignedly.

“Dancing Queen.”

“Oh dear god,” Mary buried her head in her arms. “No way.”

“It’ll be fun!”

“No.”

“It’s catchy and well-known!”

“No.”

“We might have a shot at winning.”

“No.”

“I’ll tell you how I sneak into the boys’ dorms at night.”

“Deal.”

“Wait, what?” Lily said, glaring at Mary. “That’s all it took?”

“What? I’m only human, Evans,” Mary responded. “Get ready for disco dancing, we’re doing ABBA.”

“I’m jumping off the tower and none of you can stop me.”

“Why are you jumping off the tower?” James asked as he and the other boys entered through the portrait hole.

“They want me to perform Dancing Queen. I simply won’t have it.”

“What do you have against ABBA, Evans?”

“Oh no. Please don’t tell me-“

“You are the dancing queen, young and sweet, only seventeen,” James sang. He wasn’t actually bad at singing, Lily noted.

“No, Potter, why would you betray me like this?”

“Dancing queen, feel the beat of the tambourine-“

“Go to hell!”

“You can dance, you can jive-“

“Fuck off James!”

“Oooh, see that girl, watch that scene, dig-“ James was cut off as a pillow hit him in the face. “You just declared war, Evans.”

“Good! Suffer my wrath, you disco-loving bastard!”

The rest of the group watched on as James and Lily began to attack each other with pillows. 

“Do they even realize we’re still here?” Remus asked.

“Doubt it, babe. They’re in that young lovers, don’t-see-anyone-but-you headspace right now,” Sirius replied. “Remember when we were like that?”

“I distinctly remember us never being like that.”

“You were worse actually,” Frank said.

“Shut it Longbottom.”

“Yeah, no one asked you.”

——————————————————————————————

“Where is Marlene?” Dorcas stormed into the Great Hall. James, who was closest to her, startled so badly he dropped his sandwich.

“What’s happening? Why are you so pissed?” Sirius asked.

“Fuck off, Black, where is she?” 

“Cas, we haven’t seen her,” Lily answered. “Do you want to wait here for her? And maybe tell us what’s wrong?”

“That asshole- told her not to do anything- picking fights that aren’t hers- didn’t respect my goddamn wishes-“ Dorcas was fuming so much she barely seemed able to articulate the issue.

“Ok, why don’t you just sit down for a few minutes?” Lily said, shooting a glance at the rest of the group. Her confusion and apprehension was mirrored on their faces.

“Hey guys, what’s up-“

“You!” Dorcas stood up, glaring at Marlene, who stopped dead in her tracks. “You absolute goddamn idiot!”

“Ok, fair, but what did I do this time?” Marlene asked.

“Hey guys, you wanna maybe do this somewhere else?” James asked, looking around at the other students, who had suddenly gone very quiet.

“Yeah. Come with me, you jackass,” Dorcas said. She walked off, Marlene staring after her.

“What happened?” She asked, clearly scared.

“Something about you not respecting her wishes?” Lily answered.

“Oh shit,” Marlene paled. “This is not gonna be fun.”

——————————————————————————————

“You asshole!”

Marlene winced as Dorcas rounded on her the second they made it into the common room. “Look, I know you’re pissed, and-“

“Oh, this is well beyond pissed, McKinnon. I’m fucking furious,” Dorcas replied. “You heard me say I didn’t want anyone to do anything, and you went behind my back and did something incredibly fucking stupid!”  
“I would argue that it was pretty genius actually.”

“Genius? You call setting a fucking bludger loose in Rein’s office ‘genius’?” 

“I mean, it was pretty good if I do say so myself-“

“You shouldn’t have done it.”

“And why not?” Marlene asked. “He was being a racist dick, accusing you of cheating because he doesn’t think black people can be smart, and now his shit’s destroyed. I’d say it was a fair fucking punishment.”

“You accomplished nothing, and now he’s gonna think I did it-“

“Actually he won’t,” Marlene interrupted.

“Why not?”

“I maybe, sort of, kinda, may have left enough clues for him to realize it was me,” Marlene stuttered.

“You did what.”

“Well, I wasn’t gonna let anyone else take the fall for it,” Marlene said. “Why in the hell would I do that? If Rein has anything remotely resembling a brain, he’ll figure out it was me, but he won’t be able to fully prove anything, so it’ll be fine.”

“You still shouldn’t have done it,” Dorcas said forcefully.

“Why not?”

“Because it was my fight, not yours! Rein was being an idiot, but I was handling it-“

“By doing nothing!”

“Because doing something won’t matter. You didn’t change his mind, he won’t stop being racist, you didn’t accomplish anything, so next time don’t bother!” Dorcas advanced, getting closer until she had backed Marlene into a wall. The warm brown eyes Marlene loved so much were hard and cold, and it hurt her more than she expected.

“I didn’t do it because I thought it would change his mind!” Marlene defended.

“Then why?”

“Because-“ Because what? Because I love you and I don’t want people to get away with hurting you? It wasn’t like Marlene could answer with that. Dorcas was already angry with her, she didn’t want to drive her away entirely.

“Because what?” Dorcas seethed. She was entirely too close, and Marlene could feel her skin heating up. She glanced down at Dorcas’ lips before catching herself.

“Because he shouldn’t be able to get away with that. People shouldn’t get to do things like that without consequences.”

“He already has gotten away with it, Marlene,” Dorcas replied.

“Yeah, but consider this: now his office is destroyed.”

“Is that supposed to help?” 

“No, but at least it’s kinda funny.”

Dorcas finally cracked a small smile at that. “No, I’m supposed to be mad at you,” she groaned. “You can’t make me smile when I’m mad at you.”

“But it’s so much nicer when you’re smiling,” Marlene grinned. Dorcas looked down, shaking her head and blushing slightly. 

‘Clearly Jack wasn’t doing a good enough job if a simple compliment still made her blush. He should be writing her sonnets. Dorcas deserves sonnets,’ Marlene thought.

“Look, I’m really sorry, ok? I shouldn’t have gone behind your back. I just…. I don’t like when people get away with hurting you,” she said, looking down.

“No, Marls, hey… Look,, I get why you did something. But next time, maybe just wait for the go-ahead?” Dorcas said. Her voice was softer now, and she hadn’t backed away. Marlene could smell the perfume she wore; it was jasmine scented and intoxicating.

“Yeah, I’ll… I’ll do that. I’m sorry I didn’t respect your wishes. It won’t happen again.”

“Good.”

Marlene wasn’t quite sure what to do after that. She wasn’t angry anymore, and without the distraction, her attention wandered. She stared at Dorcas, almost physically unable to look away. She noticed a curl of hair that had escaped Dorcas’ bun. Marlene grinned goofily, unable to help herself. 

“What?” Dorcas asked, smiling too.

“You have, here, let me just….” She pulled Dorcas even closer, surprising herself with her boldness. Marlene gently tucked the stray hair behind Dorcas’ ear, her hand lingering for a second. She glanced at Dorcas’ eyes for a second.

But then she couldn’t look away.

Marlene went breathless, gasping for air, drowning in the flecks of gold in Dorcas’ eyes.

She unconsciously began to lean towards Dorcas.

It seemed almost like Dorcas was leaning in too. 

——————————————————————————————

“Marlene, did you seriously set a bludger loose in- shit, sorry, didn’t see anything!” Lily whipped around, facing the wall instead of her friends. To be fair, she hadn’t expected to walk in and see them leaning in for a kiss.

“Lily, hey. What is it?” Marlene asked through gritted teeth. Dorcas had jumped back as soon as she heard Lily come in.

“I, uh, sorry. Didn’t mean to walk in on….your argument.”

“It’s fine. Marlene and I are ok now, right?” Dorcas asked.

“Yeah, we’re good. Cas, uh, you should probably…”

“Yeah, I’ve got stuff….to do, uh….studying, I’m gonna go!” Dorcas stuttered, hurrying out the door without another word.

Lily stared at Marlene, who was blushing slightly. “What was that? Were you gonna-“

“Nothing happened ever, you saw nothing because absolutely nothing happened, that will never be mentioned again, fuck off,” Marlene rambled.

“Ok, but you realize something, right?” 

“What?”

“Dorcas must like you if she was about to kiss you,” Lily explained.

“No, that’s not… that’s not what was happening. I was just fixing her hair,” Marlene defended. 

“Uh-huh. Is that what they call it these days?”

“Shut up. She has a boyfriend. And even if she is attracted to me, that doesn’t mean she actually likes me,” Marlene said.

“Ugh, fine, whatever. Anyway, did you actually set a bludger loose in Rein’s office?” Lily asked.

“Hell yeah I did.”

“Nice one, Sirius is very proud of you. He says he’ll get you a bottle of firewhisky, but I wouldn’t count on that if I were you.”

“Dope, I’m gonna make him at least give me cookies.”

“And I’m gonna go see the damage to Rein’s office,” Lily said. “I bet it’s fucking wrecked.”

“Oh yeah, it absolutely is. Go check it out, I’m very proud of it.”

——————————————————————————————

The damage to Rein’s office was certainly catastrophic. Papers were strewn everywhere, furniture was overturned, and there was even a hole in the desk. Paintings had fallen to the floor, frames broken and their inhabitants grumbling. There were dents in the floor, wall, and ceiling, and a hole in the window where the bludger must have escaped.

Lily smirked as she surveyed the damage. ‘Couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy,’ she thought. She would have to congratulate Marlene when she saw her at dinner.

She was about to leave when she heard footsteps outside the office. She looked around, trying to find a place to hide. How could she explain her being there without incriminating herself?

She dove behind a cabinet just as the door opened. She stayed as quiet as se could, hardly daring to breathe, hoping whoever entered would leave soon.

“What happened to your office?” Lily heard a strange voice ask. 

“Someone got in and destroyed the place. I haven’t figured out who, but when I do…” She heard Rein answer.

“Never mind that. How are things progressing?”

“Most students seem resistant to the methods, but some of them clearly agree with the message. They’re all a bit intimidated, which honestly makes it a little easier in class.” Rein chuckled. Lily strained to hear him without giving herself away.

“Hmmm. And what was the trouble with the students who were expected to do well?”

“They sort of started up their own thing. But mine is more successful so far, and they almost got caught. And as soon as I educate them, they’ll understand,” Rein said. Lily wasn’t quite sure why he emphasized the word educate, but it sent a shiver down her spine.

“Very well. I’ll report your progress, but if you don’t advance significantly by the end of the year, the consequences may be…severe.”

“I understand, but you have to remember-“ Rein cut himself off. Clearly whoever he was talking to was no longer listening. Lily held her breath yet again, hoping that he wouldn’t notice her.

Rein sighed heavily. He took a seat at his desk and took out a quill, grabbing a stack of papers and beginning to write.

‘Damn it,’ Lily thought. ‘How do I get him to leave?’

She kept quiet, desperately thinking of ways to make her escape. There was no way to get out with him in the room, and it didn’t seem like he was leaving anytime soon. She was stuck until he got up.

Just as Lily had accepted her fate, a ruckus came from outside the office. Rein looked up just in time to see James burst into the door.

“So sorry, sir,” he panted. “Filch wants to see you, Peeves has been spreading some sludge all over the castle and it keeps burning whoever touches it.”

“Blasted poltergeist,” Rein muttered. “Fine.” 

Rein stood and hurried out the door, nearly knocking James over as he rushed past. James stared after him, and then turned into the room.

“Lily? You alright?” He asked.

Lily stood up. “How did you know I was in here?”

James grinned. “I can always sense when a Marauder is in need. C’mon, I don’t know if Rein will realize I was lying and come back.”

James held out his hand.

Lily took it.

It wasn’t until they had run all the way back to the common room hand in hand that Lily realized James had called her a Marauder.

She decided to blame her sudden blush on the exertion from running.

——————————————————————————————

Lily grimaced as she walked into the Hospital Wing. Ever since the snake and skull incident, Madam Pomfrey had been asking her to come in for mental health checks on Friday afternoons. It wasn’t awful, but it sure as hell wasn’t fun.

“Lily, good to see you,” Madam Pomfrey said. “Anything new happening right now?”

“Nope. What am I doing today? Do I get to look at dots and say what they mean to me? What kind of diagnosis will that even get me, Poppy?” Lily asked, draping herself dramatically over the couch in the nurse’s office.

“Haha. This is your mental health on the line, Miss Evans. Why do you insist on taking everyone’s emotions seriously but your own?”

“I suppose I’m just special like that.”

Lily and Madam Pomfrey had always gotten along well. Lily was usually the one to drag her friends into the Hospital Wing after they got themselves injured, and she was always in with Remus during the days after a full moon. She also aspired to be a Healer. She had wanted to be a doctor when she was younger, and when she found out there was a magical equivalent, she knew it was the career she was meant for. Ever since, she had spent a good bit of her free time in the Hospital Wing, learning what she could. Madam Pomfrey was kind to her, and always encouraging.

“Is there anything you’d like to talk about today?” Madam Pomfrey pulled her out of her reminiscing. 

“Uh, not really. I just wish it felt like the whole….incident was over, you know? Like I had done something to end it.”

“Hmm. Do you think some form of closure might help you?”

“Maybe. But I don’t want to see the grave or anything. I just wish I felt like the killers were gonna get caught,” Lily confessed.

“Perhaps there’s something you can do about that.”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you have any suspicions about who may have been behind the attack?” Madam Pomfrey asked.

Lily’s mind flashed back to Snape. ‘Stay away from the sign of the snake’, he’d warned her.

“Yes,” she answered. “Yeah, I’ve got some thoughts on who may have done it.”

“Sharing those thoughts with someone may help you feel as though you’ve achieved some form of justice,” Madam Pomfrey said. “Maybe you should talk things through with the Headmaster.”

“I don’t want to bother him,” Lily responded. “And besides, if I’m wrong, I don’t want anyone’s lives to be ruined over it.”

“I’m sure Dumbledore with think rationally about any and all theories presented to him, it’s not likely he’d just assume a traumatized student is correct.”

“Wow, and to think people call you nurturing,” Lily snarked. 

Madam Pomfrey laughed. “Don’t know why they would ever slander me like that.”

“I’m sure they’re just misguided.”

“You think you’re hilarious.”

“Someone’s got to be, Poppy,” Lily replied.

“You know, Minerva would have conniptions if she heard you call me by my first name,” Madam Pomfrey grinned.

“Should I stop then?”

“Oh god no, do it in front of her as much as you can.”

——————————————————————————————

Despite the fact that most of her therapy sessions were spent bantering with Madam Pomfrey, some helpful suggestions did come out of them.

Like talking to Dumbledore.

Lily paced in front of the entrance to the Headmaster’s office. She was still unsure about doing this. All she had to go on was a vague warning and suspicions, and surely Dumbledore wouldn’t take that seriously, would he? She had talked to the group about it beforehand, and while it was definitely an interesting conversation, it wasn’t the most helpful. And so Lily continued to pace, wondering if she should go through with it at all.

“Miss Evans?” Lily jumped and whipped around upon hearing the Headmaster’s voice.

“Professor Dumbledore, sir!” She stuttered. “Um, hello.”

Dumbledore looked amused by how nervous she seemed. “Hello, Miss Evans. Poppy tells me you have something to discuss with me?”

“Uh, yes sir.”

“Come in then. Would you like any tea?” Dumbledore asked as he ushered Lily into his office.

“Erm, no thank you.”

“Very well. May I inquire as to why you’re here, Miss Evans?” Dumbledore asked as he sat behind his desk.

It would seem all she needed to begin to table was a slight push. “Well Professor, I wanted to talk to you about the snake and skull incident. I think I know who may have done it, or at least had something to do with it. And I’m not sure but they definitely knew something beforehand, and I could be entirely wrong but they may have really even come up with the idea-“

“Miss Evans?” Dumbledore interjected. “Is it safe to assume you’re talking about a student?”

“Yes sir, and I know it may sound crazy but they said something very suspicious and if they had something to do with it, I couldn’t just not tell anyone, but I also don’t want to be wrong, but I kind of don’t want to be right-“

“Miss Evans, may I ask exactly what this student said to you to make you believe they were involved?”

“He, er, he came up to me after class. Snape, he told me to watch out for the sign of the snake.”

“Severus Snape told you this? He warned you?” Dumbledore said, standing and walking to the window.

“Uh, yes sir-“

“How peculiar,” Dumbledore mused. “Strange, but perhaps not unpredictable.”

“Sorry sir?” Lily asked disconcertedly. “What’s peculiar?”

“Are you aware of the muggle practice of psychology?”

“Er, yes.”

“The science of the mind, and they even study behavior too. You know, wizards are often so preoccupied in how magic works, we forget to wonder about the beauty of how people work. A true shame. I believe the only thing you really need is to understand people. After you’ve learned that, the secrets of the universe are yours.”

Lily stared at the Headmaster, more than a little confused. “You’re probably right, sir, but I don’t see what that has to do with anything.”

“No, of course not,” Dumbledore chuckled. “Forgive me, Miss Evans, I’m certainly getting older and more distracted. What you have said to me, I assume it means you suspect Mr. Snape and his friends were involved in the attack?”

“Well, yes, but I’m not sure-“

“Perhaps not, but you’ve still been a great help to me, Miss Evans.”

“I have, sir?” Lily had no idea what was happening anymore, and she wasn’t even going to try to pretend she did.

“Oh yes, you may have given me exactly what I need. And rest assured, I will investigate your suspicions, though I am unsure anything will come of them.”

“As long as someone looks into it. Thank you, Professor,” Lily said, standing to leave. 

“Oh, and Miss Evans?”

“Sir?”

“I was informed about the talent show. I’m quite excited to see it. A school-wide event may just be everything we need right now,” Dumbledore smiled. Lily had seen him for six years, and somehow he looked younger than he ever had.

“Yes sir, I’m very excited about it,” Lily smiled. “It’ll be fun.”

“Fun. What a marvelous concept. Well, don’t let me keep you, it’s getting late.”

“Yes sir. Have a good night.”

——————————————————————————————

“Dumbledore is weird as shit,” Lily announced as she walked into the common room.

“We been knew,” Sirius replied from the couch.

“No but like really. He’s great but he’s definitely gone round the bend.”

“Tell me something I don’t know,” Marlene responded.

“What are you two even doing down here anyway? It’s late,” Lily said, moving Sirius’ feet to sit on the couch. He stuck his tongue out at her. She flipped him off.

“We were just talking,” Marlene said. “He was rambling about Remus, I was waxing poetic about Dorcas, about the usual.”

“How very surprising,” Lily replied sarcastically. This time Marlene stuck her tongue out at her.

“What about you, Lily, got anyone you need to write sonnets for?” Sirius asked.

“Ha, no. James and you lot take up most of my time, I haven’t got the energy for romance.”

“How come James isn’t part of ‘you lot’?”

“Because he’s got some sense and the rest of you are insane.”

“Since when do you think James has sense?” Marlene asked.

“He’s changed,” Lily replied simply. “He saw his flaws and worked to improve them rather than keep denying he had them. That’s about the bravest, most admirable thing a person can do.”

Marlene and Sirius stared.

“I’m telling him you said that.” Sirius broke the silence. 

“Black, you motherfucker don’t you dare-“

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey there everyone. Sorry I haven't posted in a bit, school's been keeping me busy. I hope you enjoyed that chapter. We're building up to some plot stuff, but this is still gonna be a mostly fluffy fic. If you enjoyed it, leave a kudos and a comment. I love hearing from you and I'll respond as quick as I can. Thanks for reading and I hope you have a great day/night!


	24. Operation Avenge Lily Evans

“Marly?”

“What you whore?

“Why Dorcas?”

“What?” Marlene looked at Sirius. “The hell are you on about?”

The pair of Gryffindors were flying together over the Quidditch pitch. As close as Marlene was to Lily, sometimes she needed to talk to someone who was just as much of a disaster as she was. She trusted Lily with everything, but Sirius was just as easy to turn to, and it was nice to have someone who would just roll with whatever mood she was in.

“How’d you fall for Dorcas?” Sirius asked again. “I never really figured it out.”

“Well how’d you fall for Remus?” Marlene shot back.

“Easy. He trusted me and I trust him. I know I’m safe when he’s around.”

“Oh.”

“You didn’t expect me to actually answer you seriously, did you?”

“Nope.”

“Well if you prefer a fun answer, I can tell you about the time we got stuck in the Hospital Wing and-“

“I don’t want to hear the rest of this!”

Sirius chuckled as Marlene hit his arm.

They flew in amiable silence for a minute until Marlene began to ramble.

“It was at the end of fifth year. I was stressed about the O.W.L.S and I couldn’t sleep, at all. I would go down into the common room and study until sunrise every night. And you know, Lily would tell me to get some sleep, and Alice told me to relax, but Dorcas…. Every night, without fail, she’d come and sit with me. She’d be quiet, reading her own stuff or just sitting, and sometimes if I got frustrated she’d start humming. A little tune here and there, but it was always soft, and it always felt…..like a veil had lifted, you know? The rain outside, the fire keeping me warm, and Dorcas humming. She didn’t expect me to talk, and she didn’t judge me for being stressed, and it was safe. Safer than I’d ever felt, really. I think I was always a little bit in love with her, but that was when I realized.”

“Wow,” Sirius replied after a moment. “I think that’s the most serious words you’ve ever said in a row.”

“Oh fuck off.”

“I will not, actually.”

“One can hope, though.”

“Hope is a scam,” Sirius replied loftily. “Haven’t you heard, dear Micks? Nihilism is the next big trend.”

“You think you’re so funny.”

“Of course I am.”

“Being gay and depressed isn’t a real personality, Sirius.” Marlene deadpanned.

“Ah fuck, I can’t believe you’ve done this.”

“Best believe it, you ridiculous bitch.”

“I’m the ridiculous bitch?” Sirius scoffed. 

“Yeah yeah, fuck off. Race you to the broom shed?”

“You’re on, you insufferable- hey, no head starts, that’s cheating!”

——————————————————————————————

“Hey Princess, could you maybe help me out with potions? This essay is gonna be the death of me.”

“I thought we agreed you’d stop calling me that?”

“Ah shit. Oh well, too late to go back now, I suppose,” Dorcas replied cheerfully. “Really though, can you help me with this?”

“Yeah, alright, let me just- fuck!” Lily gasped, pressing a hand to her ribs.

“You alright?” 

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine.”

“Liar,” Dorcas accused. “What happened? Did you hurt yourself?”

“No, just fell on the stairs and bruised my ribs,” Lily lied. “No big deal, they’re just a little sore.”

Dorcas narrowed her eyes. “You’re a shit liar, Princess. What actually happened?”

“How do you know I’m lying?”

“You have a really easily spotted tell.”

“I do? What is it?”

“You move your left eyebrow just a bit. Now what the fuck happened?”

“I’m telling you, nothing happened! I just fell on a trick stair and bruised my ribs!” Lily said, concentrating on keeping her left eyebrow still.

“Ha! Liar!”

“My left eyebrow didn’t fucking move, what do you mean?”

“Lily, you sweet summer child. Why would I tell you how I actually knew you were lying? That would be stupid,” Dorcas chuckled. “Why won’t you tell me what happened?”

Lily sighed. “Because you’ll tell other people and they’ll tell other people and it’ll snowball into this massive unnecessary drama.”

“What? When have I ever done that?”

“Charms Incident of fourth year.”

“Ok that’s not fair.”

“Sure it is,” Lily said, packing up her things. “And until you’d admit it, I won’t help you with potions.”

She giggled as she heard Dorcas shout after her. “That’s really not fair! Lily, wait! Lily, come on, please? Lily!”

——————————————————————————————

“Marleeeeeeeeeeeeennnnnnnneeeeeeee.”

“What the hell and fuck, Dorcas.”

“Lily’s hiding something,” Dorcas replied as she sprawled across the couch Marlene was seated on in the common room. “And she won’t tell me what.”

“That does tend to be what happens when someone is hiding something,” Marlene responded.

“Don’t tease,” Dorcas mumbled, barely lifting her head from the cushions. “Just help me figure out what it is, please?”

Marlene looked at the girl practically laying across her lap. Looked at her legs, long and dark and draped over the end of the couch. Looked at her waist, delicately twisted to allow her to stay balanced, a strip of skin showing where her shirt had drifted upwards, and Marlene had to tear her eyes away as the thought of mapping that strip of skin with her lips became almost overwhelming. Looked at her arms, more than a little distracting in the sunlight, which was doing a truly excellent job of highlighting her curves and the softness of her skin. Looked at her neck, at the spot exactly where she’d love to leave a hickey for Dorcas to remember her by.

And finally, Marlene looked at Dorcas’ eyes.

And the world fell away.

“Yeah, ok,” Marlene breathed out, not really remembering what she was agreeing to but knowing it’s the answer she would give if Dorcas asked for something a bit different.

“Yay!” Dorcas sat up and clapped, entirely missing the adoring look Marlene had on her face. “Ok, so, Lily’s hiding an injury of some sort. Well, she’s not hiding the injury, but she’s hiding what caused it.”

“Lily’s hurt?” Marlene asked, concern snapping her out of her mental wandering. “What?”

“Yeah, she’s got bruised ribs. She says she tripped on a trick stair but she’s a shit liar. I don’t know why she’s hiding what actually happened, but it’s Lily, which leads me to believe she’s hiding something to avoid having us worry about her.”

“Which makes us all worry even more.”

“Right? Honestly, she’s lost her mind if she thinks we’ll just ignore it.”

“Did she ever really even have a mind?”

“Don’t be cruel,” Dorcas replied. At Marlene’s raised eyebrow, she shrugged. “She’s got at least three brain cells.”

“A high estimate.”

“Perhaps, but in some cases I find kindness more necessary than scientific accuracy.”

“How fortunate for the rest of us.”

“Yes, if you found my secret science journal you’d be appalled at some of the observations.”

“Secret science journal, huh? Getting in practice for the Department of Mysteries?”  


“But of course, dear Marlene. Practice makes perfect. Which, incidentally, is how I’m certain Lily was lying. Her tell is so easy to spot once you know it.”

“Yeah it’s pretty obvious. So, Detective Meadowes, what are our theories as to what Lily’s hiding?”

“We have three at the moment. Number one, she got hurt doing something incredibly stupid and she doesn’t want us to find out what she was doing.” Dorcas stood and began to pace. 

“A plausible theory.”

“Yeah, I thought so too. But I think she would have eventually caved if that was the case.”

“Alright. Theory two?”

“One of us hurt her on accident and she’s hiding it so we don’t feel guilty.”

“Shit, you think that could be it?” Marlene mentally ran through all of her recent interactions with Lily. Had she been the one to-

“I mean, it’s possible, but I don’t really believe it either,” Dorcas answered. “She would have gone to the Hospital Wing to get it healed as quickly as possible so we wouldn’t notice if that was the case.”

“Well then what the fuck is wrong?”

“Well, that leads us to theory three.” Dorcas stopped pacing. She chewed at her lip, wrapping her arms around herself. She looked so nervous that Marlene wanted to wrap her in a blanket and keep her safe from any of her worries.

“Theory three is?”

“Someone else is hurting Lily.”

——————————————————————————————

“Why wouldn’t she tell us?” Alice asked, laying across her bed. After talking about it, Marlene and Dorcas had decided to bring in a few more people to help them figure out what was wrong. Well, it was mostly Dorcas’ idea. Marlene only had one condition.

“She knew we’d flip our shit once we found out. Which is why the guys aren’t here. Sirius would lose his mind, Remus would go into scary mode, hell, even Peter might get a little too protective for us to stop them from doing something,” Marlene answered.

“What about James?” Mary asked.

“James’ reaction to something like this would be...unpredictable,” Dorcas responded. “He’d either handle it very well-“

“Or go completely batshit crazy,” Marlene finished. “And until we know which is best for the situation, we’re gonna avoid that.”

“Fair,” Mary said. “So how do we find out what’s happening?”

“I’m not sure,” Dorcas said. “I was hoping you guys might be able to help with that?”

“I don’t know. If she wouldn’t tell you, who would she tell?” Alice asked skeptically.

“I’m not sure, but eventually she’ll cave and tell someone. Or we just tail her and find out who’s doing it,” Marlene replied.

“Perhaps spying on our friend might be overkill?” Mary suggested.

“Better ideas?” Dorcas asked.

No one responded.

“Then that’s our only plan. Who’ll do it though?”

“Me,” Marlene answered immediately. “I’ve got the most experience fighting. If I see who’s doing it, I’ll have the best chance of driving them off.”

“You could get hurt,” Dorcas argued.

“Not as much as anyone else.”

“Just as much as anyone else. What if it’s a group of people, like Mulciber and his friends? What if you’re in a two against five situation?”

“Then I take out four and Lily gets the last.”

“If Lily’s in no condition to fight?”

“I won’t let it get that bad,” Marlene vowed. “Look, I’m not exactly a fan of recklessly throwing myself into danger-“

“Liar,” Alice muttered.

“But someone’s got to keep Lily safe. She’s the fucking heart of this group, of all of Gryffindor, if we’re being honest. She’d do it for any one of us.”

“I don’t like it,” Dorcas said. “You’re always the first to put yourself on the line.”

“Well then, it’s nothing new,” Marlene replied. “I’ll be fine, Cas. I’ll take care of Lily and I’ll be fine.”

“Yeah. Yeah, ok. Then it’s decided.” Dorcas said. “Marlene will start following Lily, tomorrow maybe?”

“Yeah, that should work.”

“Ok. Then I’m off to struggle through a potions essay. We’ll find a way to meet up when Marlene finds something,” Dorcas said, exiting the room abruptly.

“Is she alright?” Mary asked.

“She’s stressed and scared,” Marlene answered, still looking at the spot Dorcas had occupied. “We haven’t been in this much danger before. Things are escalating, inside and outside of the castle. She’s…. She’s trying to cope but she’s more scared than she’s letting on.”

Marlene finally turned back to the other two. They were staring at her.

“What?”

“Nothing,” Alice replied quickly. “Just…. Wondering how on earth I managed to miss something for so long.”

“What the hell does that mean?”

“Nothing. C’mon Mary, we should get back to Lily, she’ll get suspicious if we’re all together without her.”

Marlene watched them exit together, her mind racing as she tried to figure out what Alice could possibly have meant. 

——————————————————————————————

Following Lily was as boring as paying attention in Ancient Runes, and Marlene was not enjoying herself in the slightest.

“God, why is this absolute bitch taking such long ways to class?” She muttered to herself, watching as Lily once again ducked into a hallway that was nowhere near where she needed to be. She sighed, and continued to follow, attempting to be stealthy.

Her attempts were pointless.

“Gotcha!” Marlene turned around to see Lily with her wand pointed towards her. 

“Damn it, how’d you notice I was here?”

“You’re not good at being sneaky,” Lily smirked, lowering her wand. “I noticed you about four turns back.”

“How? I was so quiet!”

“Actually, you definitely weren’t.”

“Bullshit-“

“Ah, Evans, so nice of you to make this easier on us,” A new voice cut in. Both girls whipped around to see Mulciber grinning at them.

“Get lost, Mulciber,” Lily said. “It’s almost time for class, you’ll get a detention if you’re late.”

“Aw, who could possibly endure class when the idea of staying here is so…” Marlene very nearly shook with disgust as Mulciber’s eyes ran up and down their bodies. “..entertaining?”

“You heard her, you creep. Get lost,” Marlene replied. She let her wand slip out of her sleeve and into her hand, hoping the threatening action might convince Mulciber to just go.

“And leave two beautiful ladies alone? No, that would be very bad. Don’t you know that girls who walk alone are easier to target? I bet Evans knows all about that,” Mulciber drawled, eyes flashing dangerously. 

Marlene’s blood ran cold. “Lily, what is he talking about?”

“It’s nothing,” Lily replied forcefully. “Just him trying to stroke his own ego since no one is willing to stroke it for him, much like something else he has-“

“My my, so foul-mouthed. Oh well, who could expect much better of a mudblood-“

“Shut the fuck up,” Marlene seethed. “Don’t you dare call her that.”

“What are you gonna do about it? Oh that’s right, absolutely nothing, same as always.” Mulciber laughed. “Funny, isn’t it? Gryffindors are supposed to be so brave and daring, but really you’re all cowards. Too afraid of the consequences to say what needs to be said.”

“You’re delusional.”

“And you’re gonna be left with nothing when the snake comes for you.”

“Get the hell away from us, Mulciber,” Lily growled, grabbing Marlene’s arm. “C’mon, let’s go.”

“Oh no, you’re not leaving now. Stupefy!”

Lily fell to the ground. Marlene whipped around, wand pointed at Mulciber. “Expelliarmus!”

His wand flew out of his hand, clattering to the ground as Marlene rushed to check on Lily. He snarled.

“Fine. We’ll do this the mudblood way.”

Marlene looked up just in time to see him charge.

——————————————————————————————

“What the hell did he mean, girls walking alone are easier to target?” Alice cried. “What the fuck did he do? I’ll kill him, I swear to god I’ll cut him from chin to groin and take all of his organs out and shove them down his fucking throat-“

“Ok, Alice, we all want him dead but now’s not really the time,” Frank said, wrapping his arms around Alice and lifting her off the ground slightly to prevent her from running off to murder Mulciber.

“I don’t know what he meant. He monologued for a bit, stunned Lily, I disarmed him, and then he charged at me. I sort of like, flipped him over me, I guess? The point is, he landed on Lily and now her arm is broken,” Marlene said. “Which is my fault I suppose. Shit, I broke Lily’s arm.”

The Gryffindors were gathered in the Hospital Wing. Marlene had grabbed Lily and brought her there as soon as she was sure Mulciber was out cold. 

“Hey, Marls, you did the right thing. You didn’t exactly have a way of aiming where he’d land, Lily’s arm isn’t your fault,” Dorcas replied. 

“Isn’t it though? I mean, if I had just let him get me-“

“Then you’d be in a hospital bed too and I’d kill someone over it, so really this was the best outcome,” Dorcas finished evenly.

“Cas, this is on me. I broke Lily’s arm.”

“You did nothing wrong. Admittedly flipping him was an interesting move, but it worked. And the broken arm will be fine in five minutes. The real issue is that Mulciber has been attacking Lily.”

“What are we gonna do?” Mary asked.

“Fucking kill Mulciber,” Remus said almost mildly. “It’s pretty simple.”

“Yeah I’m down for that,” Dorcas responded.

“I’m with them,” Peter said. “It’s easy, it’s quick, it’s a one and done solution… it’s really just our best option, you know?”

“Yeah, good idea babe,” Sirius said brightly. “Can I do the honors?”

“No,” Alice said. “That sick bastard is mine. I get to be the one to make him regret this.”

“Fine. Can I roughen him up first?”

“Of course.”

“Guys,” Marlene interjected. “I adore that idea, but I don’t want to go to Azkaban yet.”

“Yet,” Sirius emphasized. “But fine, I get it. We just can’t let this slide though.”

“Of course not, we’ll get them back for this. But-“

“It doesn’t matter.”

Everyone turned to see James, sitting at Lily’s bedside. He had been there, silent, the whole time, and hearing him speak was surprising.

“What do you mean?” Sirius asked.

“Screw Mulciber. We can’t get him back, he’ll hit us twice as hard no matter what we do. That doesn’t matter. What matters is that Lily’s ok. That’s all that matters,” James said. “Just Lily.”

“James is right but also wrong,” Dorcas spoke up. “Obviously Lily needs to be ok, but this can’t go unpunished. He’s hurt her before, he’ll do it again if we don’t stop him.”

“So what do we do?” Frank asked.

“What do we do about what?” Lily groggily sat up. “Wuz goin’ on?”

“Lily!” Marlene cried, rushing over. “You’re awake!”

“Unfortunately. What are we talking about?”

“Don’t worry about that. How are you feeling? You alright? No soreness or pain in your arm?” James asked.

“I’m good. Arm twinges a bit but fine besides that. Marly, you ok?” Lily asked, swiveling to look at Marlene. 

“Yeah, I’m fine Lils. Sorry I flipped him onto your arm.”

“Nah, it was a pretty cool thing to be honest with you. Martial arts expert Marlene McKinnon, saving girls from asshole Slytherins.”

Marlene laughed. “Yeah right. Completely fucking panicking and throwing a guy doesn’t really count as martial arts.”

“Eh, you did good Micks,” Sirius said. “Now just use that energy to help us maim Mulciber.”

“There will be no maiming,” Lily declared.

“But-“

“No, Alice.”

“Consider this-“

“Remus, stop.”

“What if we-“

“Not you too, Peter.”

“Guys?” James interuppted. 

“Yeah?”

“Where did Dorcas go?”

The group looked around.

“Well shit,” Marlene said dumbly. “Mulciber may already be a corpse.”

——————————————————————————————

“Cas, wait!”

“Nope. Time to kill Mulciber.”

“Have you even properly established an alibi?” Marlene shouted down the hall.

Dorcas halted. “Well, you and I are wandering around the school. No one actually knows where we are, so as long as you vouch for me, they can’t prove I was the murderer.”

“Ok admittedly that’s good. I played right into your hands there,” Marlene responded.

“No shit,” Dorcas scoffed, beginning to walk away.

“No wait, you stay here-“ Marlene caught Dorcas by the wrist just as she turned into a new hallway.

“Let go,” Dorcas said simply.

“Yeah, see, thing is, I can’t really do that, because I can’t let you go kill someone-“

“Marlene.” Dorcas stepped forward. Marlene swallowed and took a step back. “Let. Me. Go.”

“Erm, can’t do that Cas, really sorry but-“

“Marlene.” Dorcas had Marlene backed into a wall now, a hand on her waist to prevent her from moving. The stones were cool and rough on Marlene’s back, unlike Dorcas’ body, warm and soft, but unyielding against her as she kept her hold on Dorcas’ wrist while simultaneously being held in place.

“Dorcas,” Marlene returned, mouth dry. “I really can’t let you do this.”

“So we let him get away with hurting Lily?” Dorcas said lowly. 

“Er, well, no, but…” Marlene could barely think. Her mind was screaming with how close Dorcas was, how easy it would be to lean down and capture her lips in a kiss, how Dorcas was keeping her pinned to the wall so easily.

“What do we do then?” Dorcas questioned.

“We, uh, we… prank him!” Marlene blurted out.

“We prank him?” Dorcas asked skeptically. “How exactly would that discourage him?”

“Easy. We screw over all of Slytherin. We leave a clear message, hurt Lily again and we’ll do much worse. Every Slytherin knows they got screwed because of him, so if he tries shit again, they stop him for us so they don’t have to deal with the consequences.”

“So collective punishment? You now that’s a war crime under the 1949 Geneva Convention, right?”

“God you’re such a fucking nerd,” Marlene breathed. “How do you just know that?”

Dorcas giggled. “Some of us study.”

“Sounds horrific, how do you survive it?”

“Well, having someone to take my mind off it occasionally helps,” Dorcas replied.

This time, Marlene was sure she wasn’t imagining Dorcas leaning into her. 

She let her eyes flutter closed and leaned in too.

——————————————————————————————

“Ha! Caught you- oh shit, sorry!” James spun around and faced the wall. He had expected to find Dorcas and Marlene arguing, not kissing.

“James!” Dorcas jumped back. “What are you-“

“Sorry, so sorry, didn’t mean to interrupt-“

“You didn’t interrupt anything,” Marlene said quietly. “Dorcas was just… talking about the 1949 Geneva Convention.”

“What?” James asked. “You two…. You weren’t, erm, you weren’t-“

“We were just talking,” Dorcas said, keeping her eyes trained on the ground. “Marlene came up with a plan to stop Mulciber.”

“Yeah? That’s uh, that’s great. Really great. Why don’t you go tell everyone else?” James suggested.

“Yeah, I’ll… do that.” Marlene exited quickly, not looking at Dorcas once.

“Dorcas!” James whisper-shouted.

“What?” Dorcas replied.

“What was that? You had her up against a wall! Were you just not gonna kiss her?”

“I…” Dorcas looked at him. “Was about to. Oh god, I was about to kiss Marlene.”

“Why didn’t you?”

“Because…I’m with Jack! And it wouldn’t mean anything to her. She’d think I’d lost my mind or something,” Dorcas argued.

“Ok, you and Jack are just talking. Has he asked you to go steady?”

“Well, no, but-“

“Then you wouldn’t be doing anything wrong, kissing someone else,” James said. “Look, if he hasn’t asked you to be exclusive, then you don’t need to feel bad for talking with someone else, ok?”

“Yeah, fine, but even if that wasn’t an issue, I shouldn’t have even gotten close to kissing Marlene!”

“Why not?”

“Because she doesn’t like me like that! She’s not into me, James, like at all. She just wants to be friends,” Dorcas answered frustratedly, trying to keep her voice down.

“How can you be sure if you never ask her?” James responded.

“I’m sure. Look, can we just drop this? Please?” Dorcas asked desperately.

“Fine. But Cas…” James trailed off. Dorcas looked at him questioningly. He laughed and pulled her into a hug.

“Don’t push away good things when they come to you,” he muttered into her hair.

“Yeah, I guess I can decode that,” Dorcas smiled. “Now come on. Marly really did come up with a decent plan.”

——————————————————————————————

“Ok, so we know we have to prank the Slytherins and tell them it’s because of Mulciber. But what should the prank be?” Remus asked. The group, with the exception of Lily, was spread out across the common room, each one attempting to form a plan.

“It’s gotta be big, and it’s got to interfere with all of them,” Mary said.

“What would screw all of them over?” Frank wondered.

“Could steal their robes, leave them in the Great Hall,” Peter mused.

“Do you really want to be subjected to seeing unclothed Slytherins in the morning?” Alice asked.

“Good point. It can’t be negative for the other houses,” James said. 

“Ok. Erm, what if we set a bunch of spiders loose in their common room?” Marlene suggested.

Sirius looked at her askance. “Jesus Christ, calm down Micks. We’re not sending them straight to hell.”

“Wait! That’s it!” Remus cried.

“The spider thing? Babe, we are not going anywhere near spiders-“

“No. The straight to hell thing,” Remus clarified.

“Does anyone else know what he means? Because I don’t and someone needs to explain it to me,” Frank said confusedly.

“Fill their common room with glitter. I’m talking an avalanche here. Glitter never goes away, and they’ll be finding little specks months from now. It’s annoying, it screws over every Slytherin but it doesn’t affect anyone else, and they’ll lose their bloody minds when they find out it’s all because of Mulciber.”

“That’s… actually pretty good,” Alice said. “Less violent than I’d hoped, but it checks all the boxes.”

“I’m afraid violence can’t really be our top priority. Also, how did you get glitter from straight to hell?” Frank asked.

“I was gonna make a gay joke and then I started thinking about Sirius’ rainbow glitter cape and it spiraled from there,” Remus answered.

“Sirius has a what-“

“Anyway!” Sirius clapped his hands together. “When should we pull this off?”

“Not at night. Filch has increased patrols ever since the snake skull incident. We’d never get away with it,” Dorcas said.

“Yeah, but when could we go during the day? There’d never be time,” Peter replied.

“During dinner,” Mary said. “The Slytherins will be eating. Or at least most of them will, and the few that aren’t won’t just be hanging around the common room. It’s the best time for it.”

“But it gives us a pretty small time window to pull this off. We’ve got be efficient about this,” Alice said. “Who’s best at charms here?”

Peter, Remus, and Dorcas raised their hands.

“Ok. You three will be the ones in the common room creating the glitter. Best at defensive magic?”

James, Sirius, Marlene and Frank put their hands in the air.

“Excellent. You four will be lookouts and smugglers, of sorts. Your job is to make sure that the Glitter Gang makes it in and out without being caught. James, you stick with Peter, Sirius, you’ve got Remus, and Marlene, you keep Dorcas out of trouble. Frank will be the go-between, ready to take any position if necessary.” Alice explained.

“What should you and I do?” Mary asked.

“You’ve got to keep Lily away from all of it. Maybe get her in the library or in here, but you can’t let her know where we are or what we’re doing. She wouldn’t approve in the slightest,” Alice said. “I’ll be in charge of communications and running the operation from these zone, which will be the Astronomy tower. James, you’ve got those notes we came up with?”

“Of course,” James said. “You think they’ll work for this?”

“What’s better than a field test, right?” 

“Good point.”

James stood and reached into his robe pocket. He pulled out a wad of paper scraps and placed it on the table.

“What is this?” Marlene asked.

“These are paper scraps. However, it’s what they do that matters.” Alice grabbed a piece and wrote her name across it. 

“It’s paper? What is it supposed to- oh.”

The group watched in amazement as Alice’s name appeared across every sheet of paper.

“They record and show any messages written on a single sheet on all of the pieces. And you can wipe it away, look.”

Alice waved her wand over the paper once and the ink disappeared, fading from the other sheets as well.

“Well isn’t that useful,” Sirius remarked.

“Yep. Everyone grab a paper. We all clear on our roles?”

A chorus of assent rang out.

“Great. Operation Avenge Lily Evans is a go at 7 o’clock tomorrow night. Rest up, team, you’re gonna need all the energy you can get.”

——————————————————————————————

“This is gonna go badly,” Dorcas muttered.

“Shh. They should be leaving in about 3, 2, 1- there they go,” Marlene said, ducking her head around the corner. “They’ll be gone in a few seconds. Remember, if there are any in the common room-“

“Call for backup,” Dorcas said. “Yeah, I remember. You know I can fight for myself, right?”

“I know, but I’m more used to it than you are. We’ve each got a role that plays to our strengths.”

“Fair enough. Am I clear?”

“Yeah. Go,” Marlene said.

Dorcas ran towards the dungeon’s entrance. At her side she saw Remus and Peter hurrying towards her.

“Ready?” Remus asked once they reached the door.

“Yep. Sirius try the whole, ‘call me, I’ll protect you’ thing?”

“Of course. Marlene did that too?”

“Yes. Kind of annoying huh?”

“Guys, you can trash-talk your significant others later, right now we need to be doing things,” Peter piped up. Dorcas and Remus hadn’t even noticed him opening the door. “Can we get on with it?”

“Yeah,” Remus said, stepping inside. “Let’s go.”

Dorcas walked into the common room. “Ok, this place is miserable. How do they live like this?”

“It’s a Disillusionment charm,” Remus replied. “If it’s your first time coming in the room, it looks awful, but the charm is broken if you enter more than once.”

“How do you know that?” Peter asked.

“Lily told me,” Remus answered. “Now, you have the vial of glitter I gave you?”

Peter dutifully removed it from his pocket. “You sure this is enough?”

“Its perfect. Dorcas, would you like to do the honors of scattering it?”

“But of course, good sir,” Dorcas replied, taking the vial and sprinkling glitter everywhere.

“Ok, everyone ready?” Peter asked. 

“Yep. Let’s do this,” Remus answered.

——————————————————————————————

Marlene looked down at her paper scrap as she waited, watching the words inscribe themselves.

\----

Is the charms crew in position? 

Yeah, we’re in the dungeon now. We should be out in a few minutes. 

Stay alert, some Slytherins are wandering around my end and they might be heading in. 

What do we do if they get to us?

Stop them somehow.

Thanks Alice, that’s really helpful.

Oh fuck off.

Shit, guys, hold on, there’s some Slytherins nearby. I’ll let you know when they’re gone.

\----

Marlene pocketed her paper scrap, listening intently to the Slytherins just around the corner.

“Did you hear about Flitwick’s next assignment?”

“Nah, I barely pay attention in charms. Tell me at dinner.”

“Alright. Hold on, I’m really cold, I’m gonna grab my jacket real quick.”

“Ugh, fine, hurry up.”

“Shit,” Marlene cursed. “Fuck.”

\----

Slytherins headed your way, charms crew. 

Shit. Hold them up for just a minute.

How?

I don’t know, just stall!

\----

Marlene swore under her breath and then stepped out from her hiding spot.

“Hey! Where the hell did you come from?” One of the Slytherins asked her.

“Oh, well, I’m looking for Professor Slughorn and I got lost,” Marlene lied, hoping that would convince them.

“Yeah right. Avery, that’s Marlene McKinnon,” the other student spoke up. “She’s with the Marauders, filthy mudbloods and blood traitors.”

“Woah, hey, I’m not looking for trouble, just Slughorn. You seen him around?”

“Get out of here,” Avery said. “Or we’ll have to escort you out.”

“And believe me, that would be unpleasant for all of us,” The other student spoke up.

“Well, it wouldn’t have to be,” Avery said. “Rosier, weren’t you just telling me how long it’s been since you had someone to just… relax with?”

“You know, you’re right, Avery,” Rosier replied. “It’s been awhile. And I mean, she may be a filthy blood traitor, but damn, she’s fine.”

“I’ll shove my wand so far up your ass someone will have to pull it out of your throat,” Marlene threatened.

“And feisty too. I do love it when they put up a fight,” Avery intoned. “Would you be willing to share, Rosier, or do you need her all to yourself?”

“Oh, I’ll go beyond just sharing her with you, I think all blood traitor whores should be public property, don’t you-“

Rosier crumpled to the ground, revealing Dorcas behind him with her wand aimed at his back.

“Don’t you fucking dare talk about her like that,” Dorcas seethed.

“Where did you come from?” Avery said, tripping over his robes as he pulled out his wand. “Nott! Rookwood! Get over here!”

“Time to run?” Marlene suggested.

“Seems like the best option,” Dorcas agreed, grabbing Marlene’s hand and taking off.

——————————————————————————————

“Holy shit, come on, this way!”

Dorcas tugged Marlene along, rushing down the halls. They laughed as they ran, looking over their shoulders and nearly tipping over their own feet.

“Are they following us?” Marlene gasped.

“I don’t know!” Dorcas replied. She winced as she heard rapid footsteps behind them. “Ok yeah they definitely are.”

“Shit, this hall is a dead end, where do we- wait. In here!”

“What do you-fuck!”

Dorcas nearly crashed to the ground as Marlene pulled her into a broom closet and swiftly pulled the door shut behind her. The only thing that kept her from falling was Marlene’s arm, catching her around the waist and holding her close. The two barely breathed as the footsteps from outside got louder.

“This hall is a dead end, they’re not here.” A voice called out.

“Did you see their faces?”

“Nah. Who cares though, the house elves will have the dorms cleaned out in an hour or so.”

“Yeah but c’mon. We’re really gonna let them get away with it?”

“You see them? No? Yeah, I didn’t think so. Shut up man, let’s just go.”

The voices faded, the rapid footsteps getting farther and farther away until they could no longer be heard. Dorcas finally allowed herself to exhale shakily.

“That was close,” Marlene said quietly.

“Yeah. Jesus, that was almost really bad.”

“Could’ve been worse though.”

“How?” Dorcas asked.

“I could have gotten stuck in here with Sirius.” Marlene replied seriously.

The adrenaline and ridiculousness of the situation all seemed to catch up at once and Dorcas, despite it not being that funny of a joke, lost it. She cracked up, stumbling backwards into the opposite wall as she laughed.

Marlene looked at her, clearly amused. “Damn Cas, if all I have to do to get you to laugh at shitty jokes is make you run for awhile, you’re gonna start doing laps with me during Quidditch practice.”

“Ha ha dumbass. I just, got excited you know? That was insane.”

“Yeah, it was,” Marlene said. Her voice drifted off slightly, and Dorcas looked at her questioningly.

“What?”

“You’ve, uh, you’ve got a bit of glitter on your face, just right there.” Marlene gestured towards her mouth. Dorcas flushed and wiped her mouth.

“Did I get it?”

“Um, no, it’s right here-“ Marlene pointed towards her bottom lip. Dorcas tried yet again to remove the glitter.

“Good?”

“No, it’s still there, here, let me-“

Dorcas held her breath as Marlene stepped closer and carefully drew her thumb across Dorcas’ lower lip.

“Got it,” Marlene whispered triumphantly, holding up the speck for Dorcas to see.

And suddenly her back was against the wall and Dorcas’ mouth was on hers and her knees were made of jelly. The only things holding her up were the hand on her waist and the hand so delicately tangled in her hair. Dorcas' lips were moving against hers and she was in heaven, she could taste the chocolate biscuit Dorcas had eaten and smell her jasmine scented shampoo and Marlene was losing her mind, losing it in Dorcas Dorcas Dorcas-

And then it was over.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry, I shouldn’t have done that, I’m so sorry-“

“Dorcas. Cas, hey, look at me,” Marlene said. When Dorcas kept her eyes on the ground instead, she slipped her fingers under her chin and lifted her head gently, smiling when Dorcas met her eyes.

“I’m sorry-“

“Don’t be,” Marlene replied. “If I had an issue with it, I would have stopped you. I clearly didn’t.”

“Yeah, but-“

“But what? I’m not sure you’re hearing me right, Cas. What I’m saying is…” Marlene pressed closer. “I enjoyed it.”

“You, uh, you did?”

“Mhm. I think I might enjoy a repeat performance, too.”

“You know, I don’t think anyone is expecting us back for awhile,” Dorcas said coyly.

“Hmm, and it’s not like they’d need to know how long we were in here,” Marlene grinned.

“That’s true isn’t it?”

“Yep.”

“How convenient.”

“Dorcas?” 

“Yeah?”

“Get over here and kiss me.”

——————————————————————————————

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it's been like a month since I updated and I'm so sorry about that. I hope the six thousand words make up for it. Dorlene is finally together! Or are they??? Did the prank succeed? Also RIP everyone's individual handwriting on the papers, I tried to make them different but AO3 said no. Anyway, thank you for reading tis despite how long it took. If you enjoyed it, leave a kudos and comment please! Comments really do help with my motivation and it's really nice to hear feedback! Thanks for reading and I hope you all have a good day/night!


	25. These Fucking Fools Can't Do Shit

“Oh my fucking god this is batshit crazy holy Merlin you’re so fucking stupid.”

“James that’s the furthest thing from being helpful,” Dorcas glared. 

“I’m sorry, I’m just… wow.”

“Yep.”

“You kissed her.”

“Yep.

“She kissed you back.”

“Yep.”

“You made out in a broom closet for like an hour.”

“Yep.”

“And you’re not fucking dating?” James exploded, banging his hand on the counter beside him. “What the entire flip flying fuck, Meadowes?”

“Keep your voice down!” Dorcas hissed.

“We’re in the fucking kitchens, Dorcas, no one else is here. Not even Evans, because for some reason-“

“She’s Marlene’s best friend! That comes first to her, and I can’t risk-“

“What? Marlene finding out you want something more than making out in a closet?” 

“Yes!” Dorcas cried. “Look, we talked about it afterwards, ok? She’s just bored, and I was there, and it was easy. She’s not looking for anything serious. We’re just….gonna keep doing this, you know? If one of us is bored, or something. It’s not gonna be something big.”

“Then why are you still going after her? If you know she doesn’t want anything serious?” James asked.

“Having her like this is less painful than not having her at all,” Dorcas answered. “At least for now it is. The second it isn’t, I’ll break it off, I swear.”

“Or, consider this: you tell her you want to actually date her.”

“Ha! No way in hell.”

“Dorcaaaaaas,” James whined. “Just ask her out.”

“Nope. No way.”

“Why the fuck not, Cas? What do you have to lose?”

“A fair amount of decent things. Like the fact that I know she wears strawberry chapstick and her waist fits my hands perfectly ad that when she kisses someone, she does it like she can’t imagine stopping. So no, I won’t be telling her I want more, because I’ve already gotten more than I ever expected to.”

“But you could have the dumb couple stuff too!” James responded.

“What could I gain that would be worth the risk?” Dorcas asked.

“Going on dates, holding hands, I don’t know, whatever couples do!”

“Sounds pointless.”

“But it could be incredible! I mean, if I had half a chance with Lily, I’d take it.”

“Wait, you like Lily? Like you’re still really in to her?”

“What- I- no, I just- that’s not the point right now!”

“Well then, we’re changing the fucking subject. You really like her?”

“I’ll tell you when you tell me if you copped a feel.”

“What the fuck, James.”

“Yeah, that was a bit much, sorry,” James said apologetically. “But I will need more details. Was it like a can’t-fight-the-sexual-tension type thing, or was it more of a wow-I-really-like-you-and-you-look-so-good-right-now-and-I-can’t-hold-back-anymore kind of kiss?”

“God, why did I even tell you about this?” Dorcas said exasperatedly.

“Because you were doing the whole gay panic thing and you needed help.”

“Did I fucking ask James?”

“You just did, you overgrown cowardly potato.”

“Excuse fucking moi?”

“You heard me- no, not the hair, not the hair! It’s my most valuable possession!”

“Tell me if you’re really still in to Lily!”

“Go to the ninth circle of hell!”

“I’ll see you there!”

 

“I’ll be the one who fucking sent you- ow, hexes aren’t fair!”

——————————————————————————————

“Marlene, what the entire shit did you fucking do.”

“Judgement later, advice now. How do I handle this?”

“Oh no you’re definitely getting both at once,” Sirius said. “Lily, can I do the judgement part?”

“No, I wanted judgement!” Lily whined. “No fair.”

“Totally fair. Your advice is better than mine anyway.”

“Yeah but I wanted to do the judging stare, I’ve improved it-“

“Guys!” Lily and Sirius both turned their attention back to Marlene, who looked about ready to jump into the fireplace. “Can we get back to the topic at hand?”

“No,” they both answered in unison, grinning at each other when they did so.

“Ugh, you guys suck,” Marlene said, draping herself over their laps. “First you take the couch and now you’re just being whores.”

“Wow. This is a lot of rudeness from someone who asked us to stay up until 2 a.m. with them.”

“Fuck off, Lily.”

“Mmm, no, but you could go fuck Dorcas,” Sirius replied. Marlene choked on air and fell off their laps, coughing violently on her way down.

“Well that certainly got quite the reaction. Makes me think that perhaps our darling Marlene has thought of doing that very thing,” Lily said.

“Mhm. You know, I think you may just be right, dearest Lily,” Sirius responded.

“Both of you… can go to hell,” Marlene choked out in between her loud coughs.

“Of course we will sweetheart, it’s practically my birthright. An ascension to the throne, of sorts,” Sirius answered. “But come on. You actually want to talk about this?”

“I, uh, yeah, I do.”

“Good. Ask her out.”

“Yeah right. Good joke, Sirius. But this is for real and helpful suggestions only.”

“That was a real suggestion bitch.”

“No the fuck it wasn’t!”

“Yes the fuck it was!” Lily broke in. “Marlene. You’re head over heels for this girl, you can’t deny that. You’ve been pining since the end of fifth year, and you haven’t done shit about it. And now, you know for sure that she’s attracted to you, so you should fucking ask her out.”

“Fuck no.”

“Fuck yes!” 

“Ask her out or there will be no fucking at all!” Sirius screeched.

“What the hell, Sirius.”

“Yeah that was a bit much.”

“Whatever, bitch. Did I ask for your judgement? No.”

“Look, it’s not something serious, ok? We’re just having a bit of fun with each other, and that’s it,” Marlene said.

“But you want more than bit of fun?” Lily asked.

“God, how could I not? I wish I was ok with just this, but… I want all those shitty, dumb couple things. I wanna hold her hand and play with her hair, which is really soft by the way. I want to go on dates and dance with her and fucking take naps together cuddling on the couch. I wanna be able to kiss her, not just when we’re making out, but like, when she smiles or when she gets a good grade on a test or just because I fucking want to. All that sappy, annoying, sentimental stuff, I want that with her.”

“First of all, what a fucking nerd. Absolute loser. Second of all, ask her out, bitch,” Lily replied.

“No. No way. That’s not what she wants. She’s just looking for a bit of fun on the side while she talks to Jack.”

“You’re not her side piece while she dates Jack, Micks,” Sirius replied.

“No, no, I know, it’s not like she’s cheating on him, they’re just talking, but still. She’s looking for serious stuff with him, I’m just there for when he’s not around and she’s bored,” Marlene responded.

“But you could be there for all of it. If you just level up and ask her out-“

“Level up?” Sirius asked, looking at Lily like she had grown another head.

“James would get it,” Lily answered distractedly. “Point is, you could be more than a bit of fun if you just tell her that you want more than that.”

“Tell you what: I’ll make you a deal,” Marlene said after a minute.

“Ok?”

“I’ll ask Dorcas out if you ask James out.”

“whAT-“

——————————————————————————————

“I do not have feelings for James!” Lily said to Alice as they ate lunch.

“Mhm, sure.”

“It’s true!”

“Right. Of course not.”

“Yeah. That would be ridiculous.”

“Utterly.”

“Completely.”

“Uh huh. Look, Lily, you know how obvious Sirius and Remus were? How clear it was that they were meant for each other?”

“Uh, yeah. From day one.”

“Yeah. You remember how clear it was that Frank and I were gonna be a thing?”

“Of course. You two are, like, the epitome of meant to be.”

“Right. And you know how simple Marlene and Dorcas seem? The way they just fit?”

“Obviously.”

“Yeah. None of that compares to you and James,” Alice replied.

“What the hell do you mean? James and I aren’t even dating!”

“Yeah but you could be. Come on Lily, what are your standards for guys you date?”

“I don’t know, don’t be a massive tool?” Lily shot back exasperatedly.

“No. You’ve always had three rules. They have to be funny, they have to be able to keep up with you, and they have to be a good friend.”

“Ok? That proves nothing, it’s not that hard to meet those requirements.”

“But it is. You have a very specific sense of humor. Only people in our friend group have ever managed to make you laugh. And no one can keep up with you, Lily. You’re always five steps ahead of everyone except James. And the good friend thing? How many people have you met who care as much and are as loyal as James?”

“Ok, but….look….none of that is the point! I do not like James like that!”

“Mhm, sure.”

“I don’t! And I would have realized if I did!”

“Of course, Lily. You’re very emotionally self-aware.”

“I am!”

“Of course.”

——————————————————————————————

“James and I are just friends,” Lily told Mary during Charms.

“Yeah, right, of course, did you hear what wand movement we’re supposed to be using?”

“Just because we hang out a lot doesn’t mean there are romantic feelings there.”

“Right. Was it a swish or more of a loop?”

“I can be just friends with guys! I’m friends with Frank and Peter and Remus and Sirius-“

“Was it a flick?”

“And I’ve never wanted to go out with any of them. I was also friends with Severus, I never once even thought about going out with him.”

“Uh huh. So if I do a flick, does it work- no. No it does not.”

“I mean, sure, James is funny, and kind, and I’ll admit he’s pretty fit, but does that mean I like him? No!”

“Maybe a swish? Oh god, ok, not a swish, that’s my bad, sorry-“

“I mean, I would have noticed if I liked him right, how would I not have known that- wait a minute.”

“Ok, last shot, let’s try a loop.”

“Is it possible to not realize you’ve got feelings for someone? That doesn’t seem like it should be possible. You’d know, right? I mean, how could you be oblivious to your own emotions?”

“Lily, have you considered ignoring whatever the fuck is happening in your head right now and maybe doing the Charms assignment?”

“Hmm?” Lily looked up. “Oh, yeah, sorry. What are we doing?”

“Vanishing things.”

“Oh that’s easy.” Lily waved her wand over the book in front of her. It disappeared in a flash.

“What- how- what did you-“ Mary stared in astonishment.

“Right, so do you think it’s possible to be unaware of your own feelings? Mary? Mary, what are you doing? Why are you pointing that at me-“

“You mean to tell me, I’ve been struggling to do this, for seven fucking minutes, and you knew how to do it, the whole goddamn time?”

“Mary, put the wand down- ow!”

——————————————————————————————

“I would know if I liked James,” Lily said as she sat down in the library with Remus.

“I’m sure you would,” Remus replied mildly, barely looking up from his book. 

“I mean, come on, how could I be oblivious to my own emotions?”

“Sounds very unreasonable.”

“I would know before other people did, for sure.”

“Of course.”

“It’s ridiculous to think everyone knew about my crush before I did.”

“Yes, obviously everyone is very much on top of their feelings in this group.”

“I mean, I know you and Sirius and Frank and Alice and Marlene and Dorcas were all kind of oblivious fucks, but I wouldn’t be, right?”

“Of course not.”

“Remus?”

“Yes?”

“I would know, right?”

“Do you think you would?”

Lily paused. “Actually, I think I’ve been oblivious to something big.”

Remus snorted and set his book down. “I was wondering if you’d get there.”

“Shut up,” Lily mumbled. “This is not funny.”

“You’ve got to admit it’s a little amusing.”

“No it’s not!”

“Lils, hey, look at me,” Remus switch from a dry tone to a gentle one. “This isn’t so bad, you know? Why is it so big for you?”

“Because…well…. I don’t know, it just is!”

“Ok. Look, are you upset that you may have a crush on James?” Remus asked carefully. “And hey, everything you say to me stays with me. I won’t tell anyone else.”

“Not even Sirius?” Lily asked. 

“Not even him. So, you got an answer?”

“I mean, no. I don’t even know for sure if I do like James, you know? I mean, he’s awesome to have around, and he’s a really good friend, but I don’t know if it’s like that, you know?”

“Ok, that’s understandable. What exactly are you upset about, then?”

“I don’t know,” Lily replied.

“Ok, see, that’s a lie. Come on, Lily, have I ever mocked you for something like this?” Remus responded.

“I mean… no.”

“Ok. Then what’s the real issue here?”

“I’m… I’m not supposed to get overwhelmed by stuff like this. I’m the only thing I can control, so why the fuck can I suddenly not control myself? This emotional bullshit, it’s not supposed to get to me. I’m above that.”

“No one is above their feelings, Lily,” Remus replied.

“I should be!”

“No, you shouldn’t be, because then you’d be a boring robot of a person and that would suck.”

“But this whole…. crush thing, it just feels so ridiculous, you know?”

“Enlighten me.”

“I don’t think having feelings for James is my style, you know? Catching feelings isn’t my thing. I don’t think I’ve ever once had a crush on someone. Like, if I was gonna fall for someone, I think it’d be this big, dramatic, shouting from rooftops type of thing, something noticeable, not quietly sinking into feelings.”

“You have literally shouted at James from a rooftop before.”

“Out of anger, that doesn’t count!”

“Lily.” Remus said. “The line between anger and friendship has always been a thin one for you and James. Would it be so strange if the line between friendship and romance was just as thin?”

——————————————————————————————

“From the top, girls!” Alice said. “Good job on the singing, but Lily, you have the coordination of a ferret on meth. Please try harder.”

“I would try harder if it wasn’t a fucking ABBA song!”

“ABBA isn’t that awful, Lily,” Marlene piped up from the couch. “Also, can’t you rehearse in a place that isn’t the common room?”

“Like where?” Mary asked.

“I don’t know, an empty classroom?”

“The acoustics would suck,” Alice answered.

“And they don’t in here?”

“Did I fucking ask?”

“No you did not. Sorry Mum.”

“Mhm. You’re grounded.”

“Grounded? For what?” Marlene asked indignantly.

“Idiocy. Now shut up and let us rehearse.”

“Wow, ok, I see how it is.”

“Can we take a break?” Lily pleaded desperately. “We’ve been at this for nearly an hour and a half, and the routine is only three minutes!”

“Well maybe if you focused we’d be done,” Alice replied sarcastically. 

“I do not like the effect this talent show is having on you,” Mary piped up.

“Look, I’m sorry, I just….” Alice trailed off.

“What?” Lily asked.

“With everything going, the war, the way it’s making its way into Hogwarts, I just… feel like everything is much higher stakes.”

“Alice,” Mary said. “No one is gonna get hurt if we do the routine wrong. And yeah, things are stressful right now, but they won’t be forever. The war is gonna end, and it’ll be ok. This is meant to be fun and relaxing, not stressful.”

“I know, but I just-“

“Hey, look. If this is too much, if it’s just one more stressful thing, we won’t do it. We’ll hang out with Marlene and Frank in the crowd and watch the boys do some stupid routine. But if you wanna just have fun with it, we’ll do that too. It’s your call.”

Alice looked around. Mary was smiling encouragingly, and Lily, despite her hatred of ABBA, was doing her best to seem reassuring too. Alice smiled.

“No, we’re doing this.”

“Yay!”

“But we’re starting from the top.”

“Fuck you!”

——————————————————————————————

Two weeks did not see much improvement in their routine in the slightest.

“Lily, how the fuck did you trip over air?”

“Fuck off Alice, I’m not going to your fucking baby shower.”

“What the fuck?”

“Don’t worry about it, she’s just like this sometimes,” James said as he entered the common room. “How goes rehearsal? The show’s in two days, you know.”

“Eh, no one’s dead yet, so I’d call it a victory,” Lily replied. “How’s yours?”

“Its…..something, for sure. Surprisingly enough, Sirius has a decent voice, so we’re not actually that bad off.”

“Huh. Who’d have guessed?”

“Yeah. Anyway, I’m assuming you’ve heard about Dorlene’s most recent…development?” James asked.

“Don’t fucking remind me.”

“Yeah, that’s about what I said too.”

“What should we do about it?”

“Oh, Dorcas has a plan.”

“She does?” Lily asked incredulously. “To ask Marlene out?”

“Oh god no. Apparently she’s going to make her really pay attention? I don’t know, but I think it’ll happen as part of her act in the show.”

“That’s….gonna be something.”

“Yep. Anyway, I’ve gotta get back to the boys. Oh, but, Evans?” James ran a hand through his hair nervously.

“Yeah?”

“Do you maybe wanna watch our Quidditch practice tomorrow? I know it can get boring, and you don’t have to say yes, but-“

“I’d love to.”

James’ grin was almost blinding. “Yeah?”

“Yeah, sure. And besides, the championship is coming up in like, three weeks, right? Maybe having an audience will pressure the team into doing their best.”

“Ah, the good old wholesomeness of manipulation. You sure are a sweet one, Evans.”

“Sugar and spice and whatnot. See you later?” Lily asked, uncharacteristically shy for a moment.

“Yeah, of course. See you, Evans.” James backed up, almost tripping over a chair. He caught himself and grinned before walking out.

Lily turned around to see Alice and Mary staring at her.

“What?”

“Oh, nothing. It’s just, last time Frank looked at me the way James was looking at you, I had one of the best dates of my life, and then one of the best nights,” Alice smirked.

“Oh shut up.”

“She’s kinda right, Lily,” Mary chimed in. “That was not subtle. At all. For either of you.”

“Again I say unto you, shut up.”

“Hey, it could be worse. You actually handled it very well for someone who just realized she has a crush,” Alice responded.

“Hey, I never said that I have a crush on James. And if I did, I would handle it fantastically,” Lily defended. Rather poorly, but she got the words out, so she decided to claim it as a victory nonetheless.

“Mhm. Well, now that the painfully obvious flirting is over, can we get back to practice? I’ve got a lot of Transfiguration practice to do tonight.”

“As long as it’s known that both of you can fuck right off.”

“Lily, you haven’t stopped telling us that since third year, do you really think we don’t know?”

——————————————————————————————

As soon as the closet door slammed shut, Marlene was slammed against it.

“Wait, Cas, we should-“ Marlene let out a quiet moan as Dorcas kissed her, melting into the solid body holding her upright.

“We should what?”

“Screw talking, go back to doing what you were doing,” Marlene replied, tangling her fingers in Dorcas’ hair and pulling her flush against her.

“Mmm, tell you what, how about we make a deal?”

“I’m- oh god- I’m listening,” Marlene gasped out as Dorcas kissed her neck.

“You tell me what you were gonna say, and for every full sentence you manage to get out, I drive you just a little bit more crazy.” Dorcas grabbed Marlene’s wrists and pinned them at her sides. “Or I could just walk out of here right now.”

Marlene whined unintelligibly.

“Use your words, darling.”

“Please don’t leave, I’ll tell you, I’ll tell you whatever- fucking hell, Cas, please!”

Dorcas chuckled. “Alright then. Talk whenever you’re ready sweetheart, but remember, you stop, I stop.”

“Uh huh,” Marlene breathed out. “I was gonna say…. I was... I was gonna say…”

“Keep going, you’re doing so well,” Dorcas drawled, tracing a fingertip across Marlene’s collarbone lightly, as though she was planning where she would kiss her next.

“I was gonna say… we should- oh god Cassie, please-“ Marlene’s voice trailed off into a desperate whimper as Dorcas bit down gently on her collarbone.

“Uh-uh, full sentences. Unless I should leave-“

“I was gonna say we should make rules!” Marlene cried out. “Don’t go, god, Cas, you can’t work me up like this and then just leave, please-“

“Rules? What for, darling?” Dorcas breathed out.

“For, for this, this thing that we’re doing, whatever it is.”

“Ok. What rules do you think we need?” Dorcas asked, stepping away and masking her pain with a coy tone.

“Well for one, no more visible hickies. I nearly used up all of my concealer trying to hide everything you did last time, and it still barely hid some of it,” Marlene said.

Dorcas smirked. “Yeah, you’re gonna need more concealer then. Definitely left a very visible one just… there.” She drummed her fingers lightly on Marlene’s collarbone. Marlene shivered, more affected by the touch then she cared to admit.

“Ugh, you asshole. Fine, but please try not to make them obvious.”

“No promises.”

“Of course not. And another rule.”

“Another one?”

“We don’t turn this into a big thing. I know we talked about that earlier, but I think we need to clarify it more.”

“Ok. Then clarify away,” Dorcas replied.

“This isn’t dating or anything. This is just… two people having a bit of fun, enjoying each other.”

“Right, yeah, totally. Just a bit of fun.”

“Of course. And, you know, if Jake Barrel-“

“You mean Jack Barrow?”

“Right, sure, if Jake asks you out, like to be his girlfriend, to go steady, then obviously this will have to stop,” Marlene said. She knew she sounded like she was trying to convince herself, but she had never been the best actor and hiding her feelings seemed to get harder the closer Dorcas got. Which is why she needed rules. Clearly that would be enough to control the situation, to separate actions from feelings and keep her from making a mistake. Right?

“Yeah. No, yeah, sure. Of course. This isn’t like, a relationship or anything,” Dorcas replied quickly.

“Of course not. Just two people having fun.”

“Yep, of course. Just two people, keeping it casual. Having some fun.”

“Cas?”

“Mhm?”

“Can we go back to having fun?”

“I don’t know Marlene,” Dorcas answered, stepping closer again. “How much do you want it?”

Marlene retreated a step, pressed her back against the door. “Very much.”

“Yeah?” Dorcas grabbed her wrists again. “Enough to beg?” 

“If you want me to.”

“Oh, I do. And I want more than that.”

“How much more?”

“How much are you willing to give me? How far are you willing to go, Marlene? Because I guarantee, whatever you’ll let me have, I’ll be more than happy to accept.”

“What if I’m willing to go as far as you want?”

Dorcas dropped the flirty tone, looking into Marlene’s eyes. “Are you?”

“Yes,” Marlene answered honestly. “I trust you.”

“I trust you too.”

“Good. In that case, Dorcas, you should also trust that if you keep teasing me, you’ll regret it,” Marlene smirked.

“Oh darling, I don’t think I’ll have any regrets at all.”

——————————————————————————————

Lily leaned against the locker room wall, waiting for James to finally finish cleaning up. Practice had very clearly been brutal, with him putting the rest of the team through their paces to the point where, despite most of them being good friends of his, Lily could hear their angry grumbling as they trudged back up to the castle.

“What did you think?” A voice said from behind Lily, making her jump and turn around. 

“I think you’ll be lucky if one of your players doesn’t murder you in your sleep,” Lily replied, smiling at James. “You trying to work them to death or what?”

“Don’t tell them, but I would have kept practice going if the talent show wasn’t tomorrow,” James grinned.

“They’d have your head.”

“They’ll thank me when we have the Quidditch Cup in our hands in a few weeks.” James squinted at the sunset. “God, is it dinner time already?”

“Yep. You sure kept them busy, Captain Potter,” Lily teased.

“Yeah yeah. I know it’s dumb, but Quidditch is something I just get, you know? I do well in my classes, and I like doing other things, but… there’s nothing like that rush you get, when you’re flying and the only things that matter are flying with you. You can lose yourself and still be perfectly in control.”

Lily stared at James.

“What?” He asked, running a hand through his hair nervously. “Was that dumb?”

“No,” Lily stuttered out. “Not at all, I’ve just… I’ve never felt anything like that.”

James grinned. “Evans, have you ever flown since lessons in first year?”

“Well, no, but-”

“That absolutely will not do at all. Come on, we’re going flying.” James turned around and strode back towards the pitch. Lily hurried after him.

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” She asked as he led her out onto the pitch, broomstick in hand.

“Do you trust me, Lily?” James smiled, holding out his other hand for her to take.

The answer was instant. “Yes.”

“Then trust that I won’t let you get hurt. So, just hop on the broomstick behind me, nice and easy- good. I’m gonna take it slow, alright?”

 

“Ok.”

“Alright. We’re gonna float up a bit-”

The broom rose a few feet in the air. Lily yelped and threw her arms around James, holding onto him tightly.

“Evans, could you do your best not to crush me to death?” James wheezed.

“Right, yeah, sorry. I just didn’t think we’d be so high up so soon.”

“We’re only a few feet off the ground, Lily. Are you scared of heights?”

“Maybe?” Lily answered.

“You should have bloody well said so, I wouldn’t have tried to take you up here-”

“No, wait, I don’t mind, I just…. Do you promise that I won’t fall?”

James put one of his hands on Lily’s, which were still clasped tightly around his waist. “I promise.”

“Then take me flying, Captain Potter.”

“Roger that, Lily Evans.”

“Don’t ever say roger that again or I’ll take an axe to this fucking broomstick.”

“What’s wrong with roger that? And do you even have an axe?”

“What kind of woman doesn’t have an axe?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I updated so I could give you a Dorlene make-out scene just in time for Pride month, are you happy? But honestly, sorry it took awhile, finals week took quite a bit out of me. But we're getting close to the end now, aren't we? Will Marlene and Dorcas ever stop being utter dumbasses and get their shit together? Will Lily figure out her feelings for James? Will Alice ever take a parenting class to learn how to manage these chaotic bastards? Probably not, but find out in the next chapter of Golden Years! Leave a comment if you can, they're very encouraging, and if not, hit the kudos button! Thank you all so much for reading and I hope you have a great day/night!

**Author's Note:**

> Hey there. This is the first fanfic I’ve ever written, so constructive criticism is more than welcome. I want to improve, so please tell me how rather than just telling me I suck. Believe me, I know I do. If you enjoyed, leave a kudos or a comment, that would be nice. Updates will probably be random until I work out a schedule. Thanks for reading!


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